29
votes
"Is (x) Secure" Question Anti-Pattern
I have certainly seen my fair share of questions that are unanswerable without context and / or a threat model. Having something in the FAQ to point at would be amazing.
I also like the content of ...
- 58.6k
15
votes
Accepted
Is it ok to ask questions here which can be found easily by searching on Google?
If it's the sort of thing that pops out as the first result when you do a google search using the exact terms in the question, and the answer describes exactly what is needed, then we aren't exactly ...
Rory AlsopMod
- 61.5k
15
votes
"Is (x) Secure" Question Anti-Pattern
Agreed. In some cases, it seems like this question would be unclear. In most cases, it feels like it would be too broad to answer, as you'd have to dig deep into that particular implementation.
My ...
- 22.6k
13
votes
Is "Is my PC infected?" off-topic?
The problem with these questions is the narrow scope. The answer really only benefits the asker.
We have 2 canonical questions for home PCs and Servers that we usually use to close new questions as a ...
schroederMod
- 127k
10
votes
Accepted
What is wrong with my question?
We recently had a post here called “Is (x) Secure” Question Anti-Pattern. I don't really agree with it, but the consensus is: yes, it's an anti-pattern. The answers there can likely help you.
...
- 29.4k
9
votes
Accepted
If a user (me) has a fundamental misunderstanding, shouldn't it be corrected?
In some cases, I would say yes, a misunderstanding should be corrected by an answer. In the case of fundamental misunderstandings, or false assumptions that form the basis of a question, we certainly ...
- 35.7k
9
votes
What is wrong with my question?
I think there are many qualitative differences between your Splikity question and the referenced Telegram question.
Before going into specifics, let's keep in mind the tooltip that is displayed when ...
- 14.8k
8
votes
"Is (x) Secure" Question Anti-Pattern
The version of this I encountered today was "How do I determine which encryption library is trustworthy?", which was getting voted to close based on this kind of logic. But I think it's a very ...
- 34.1k
8
votes
Is it on topic to ask about specific attack events?
It should be OK to ask, because we learn from our mistakes and from those of others. But asking the question risks inviting speculation.
I don't think a representative from Ashley Madison will ever ...
- 34.1k
7
votes
Accepted
Mention 2 names in one comment
No - this is by design.
If you have a reply to something a commenter has asked, respond to them. For another commenter, reply to them separately.
Remember, though, comments are supposed to be brief ...
Rory AlsopMod
- 61.5k
7
votes
Questions are no longer being accepted
Please see this meta post.
The greatest emphasis:
Automatic bans never expire or "time out." This means that you cannot simply wait for a certain amount of time. If you do not take action, you ...
Jeff FerlandMod
- 38.2k
7
votes
Accepted
Are questions about lock security on-topic?
We simply do not get many physical security type questions here at all. But we do not want to ban them as a rule (there is useful overlap).
I think that questions that could help people make ...
schroederMod
- 127k
7
votes
Accepted
Are questions about metrics on topic?
It sounds very open-ended, the way you've described the question. It sounds like a request for metrics that might apply.
Questions here have to have a hope of having a single acceptable answer. If you ...
schroederMod
- 127k
6
votes
Moderator believes hardening Chrome ciphers is not about "security", not relevant here [post on hold]
We can help you answer which ciphers you should enable or disable based on your stated threat model, but we cannot help you answer the question of how to select them. This would apply regardless of ...
- 66.2k
6
votes
"Is (x) Secure" Question Anti-Pattern
I agree that those kinds of questions are not good, and anything to help guide posters is helpful. I just want to point out that our FAQ already includes some wording on this:
What background ...
- 99.3k
5
votes
Is this popular question really on-topic?
The question format of "how do I discuss [security topic] with non-security people" is on-topic. The answers will not be about making technical decisions, but that's OK.
It is because the topic in ...
schroederMod
- 127k
5
votes
Would security.stackexchange.com be a good place to ask this question
No. "Where to find a resource" questions are generally off-topic across most of the SE sites, because the answers are simply links to an external site.
To answer your question, you won't find what ...
schroederMod
- 127k
5
votes
Accepted
What is the best practice for acronym usage in Questions/Answers/Comments?
The model I have been using is based on the fact that this is a site for Information Security professionals (yes, not only them, but that's the basis). If an acronym is within the standard Body of ...
schroederMod
- 127k
5
votes
Can anyone look into wireshark logs and say if anything suspicious?
Depends on the question. In general, I would say:
"Here's a traffic dump. Notice anything strange?" Will be closed as "needs focus".
"Here's some relevant subset of trafic. I ...
- 65.2k
5
votes
Can anyone look into wireshark logs and say if anything suspicious?
We are not a code/site/log/packet dump analysis site. As you can imagine, we'd be flooded with random stuff to wade through.
schroederMod
- 127k
4
votes
Is it on topic to ask about specific attack events?
I'm responding to @ArtjomB's comment that if the answer to a question is not publicly known, then the answers will be primarily opinion-based by definition.
I see no problem with this here on InfoSec....
- 58.6k
4
votes
Is this popular question really on-topic?
The question falls under the form of
I need advice on how to explain Cryptography in layman terms
Of which there is really only one truth about what cryptography is in all of IS:SE, and that is ...
- 6,996
4
votes
Accepted
Is there any way to refocus a question in the question list?
The preferred mechanism for this is the Bounty. Once you have enough rep you can set a bounty on your question (or other people's questions.)
This highlights the question, and generates interest.
...
Rory AlsopMod
- 61.5k
4
votes
Can I ask for a Solution Manual of an Information Security Textbook?
Asking for books/resources is off-topic. Asking for recommendations for products/services is also off-topic.
It's not about the subject matter, but it's a quirk of us being a Q&A site.
schroederMod
- 127k
4
votes
Can I discuss someone else's question?
If you want clarification on an answer, asking in a comment is what you should do.
However, if you want to extend the scope of the answer or ask about how the answer applies in another context, then ...
schroederMod
- 127k
4
votes
Accepted
Are we to avoid listing specific apps / malware?
I'm actually going to put it back in. I removed the name because you said in your earlier version that you thought it was malicious and you wanted us to review it. The question could have stood more ...
schroederMod
- 127k
2
votes
Is it on topic to ask about specific attack events?
This would be the place to ask about it because it brings with it the implied questions of What attack vector was used? and What can we do to prevent this in the future? which most good answers will ...
- 6,996
2
votes
If a user (me) has a fundamental misunderstanding, shouldn't it be corrected?
No. Your question was confusing. Leaving it open would likely lead to answers of low quality and relevance being added to it. That doesn't help anyone.
But being up on hold isn't the same as being ...
- 14.8k
2
votes
Analyzing malicious code
If you want an in-depth analysis of the code, you should post to https://reverseengineering.stackexchange.com/
schroederMod
- 127k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible