On Mon, Mar 29, 2010 at 10:19:08AM -0400, Frank J. Gómez wrote:
> Our conversation centered around the importance of being able
> to recover any given employee's files in the event of their
> death (which is why encrypting the files pre-backup in such a
> way that the IT Department could not read them was not
> acceptable).  Well, what about me?  I'm the only IT person on
> staff, and I'm the only one with numerous credentials (logins
> to numerous servers, etc) that the org would need in order to
> continue to function without me.  Currently, I'm keeping a
> plain-text password file on an encrypted partition of my hard
> drive.  No one else has access to these passwords because no
> one else needs them in the course of their day-to-day
> activities.  If I get hit by a bus, they are going to be in a
> bit of trouble.  What measures do y'all have in place to ensure
> your employer can continue on without you?

Where I currently work, we have 4 admins and have a password
matrix with numbered passwords. We also maintain a mapping from
username/account info to the password sheets. So the mapping
sheet tells me that root on machine foo is password number 210.
Then I look up password number 210 is on the password sheet.

Since we have 4 admins and thus 4 copies of the sheet (and the
admins are not co-located) we don't maintain a separate secured
copy of both sheets in a safe or stored with the comptroller to
be placed in the companies safe.

In prior organizations I have used a mix of:

  putting emergency access info (including password, net boot
    instructions and other critical info) into fedex clear
    envelopes on the sides of the servers in the access
    controlled machine room. I would check weekly to make sure
    nothing was torn open or missing.

  the passwords were printed off weekly and stored offsite with
    our backup tapes.

  a copy of the passwords was kept with the company owner in his
    person safe along with the disatter recovery plan and updated
    whenever it changed.

Basically:

  find out who needs access if you aren't around

  give them a copy of the passwords and accounts

  if you have multiple passwords/counts consider a seperate
    password only sheet and a reference sheet that says what
    password map to what servers. This allows you to move
    passwords around and easily update the mapping sheet (we keep
    it in twiki). But you don't need to update the actual
    password sheet. This keeps the sensitive info safely under
    lock and key and reduces the number of times it has to be
    updated (meaning the current safe copy of the sheet is out of
    date).

  i have never been a big fan of online encrypted keys,
    preferring hard copies but the master password sheet could
    easily be encrypted and stored on thumb drives and
    distributed to the people who need it.

--
                                -- rouilj

John Rouillard       System Administrator
Renesys Corporation  603-244-9084 (cell)  603-643-9300 x 111

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