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What happens if I use Command-R and use the Recovery HD to log into the machine and erase (format) everything? Can this scenario actually happen? I mean, the Recovery HD won't ask for a password, so it would be pretty simple to lose everything or am I missing something here?
MacBook Pro (17-inch Early 2011), Mac OS X (10.7.3)
PauloRebelo wrote:
What happens if I use Command-R and use the Recovery HD to log into the machine and erase (format) everything? Can this scenario actually happen?
Yes, everything in OS X and Bootcamp, not the Lion Recovery HD
I mean, the Recovery HD won't ask for a password, so it would be pretty simple to lose everything or am I missing something here?
Yep, you can lose it all. 🙂
https://discussions.apple.com/community/notebooks/macbook_pro?view=documents
PauloRebelo wrote:
What happens if I use Command-R and use the Recovery HD to log into the machine and erase (format) everything? Can this scenario actually happen?
Yes, everything in OS X and Bootcamp, not the Lion Recovery HD
I mean, the Recovery HD won't ask for a password, so it would be pretty simple to lose everything or am I missing something here?
Yep, you can lose it all. 🙂
https://discussions.apple.com/community/notebooks/macbook_pro?view=documents
It would be pretty easy for anyone who has physical access to your computer to steal it or smash it to pieces, if all he wants to do is destroy your data. No need to boot into recovery.
Well, so am I totally wrong in thinking that Filevault is actually useless? If someone wants to erase everything, even a layman can access Lion's Recovery HD and format the drive. There's no "BIOS" password when turning on the Macbook as we had in a PC, for example.
Is there any solution for this?
Linc Davis: I have a different view on this. Using the Recovery HD, I could format the main drive and it would lose the Filevault along with all the files, of course. One could take the disk out and use even a freewareto recover a great sum of data that was previously stored on it.
FileVault is not intended to, and does not, prevent a local attacker from destroying your data. It is intended to, and does, prevent a local attacker from stealing your data.
Make the USB stick of the Lion Recovery HD, Using Lion Recovery Disk Assistant, then remove the Recovery HD partition.
That will work to stop most normal hackers from erasing your data. Only the people that know how to access the OnLine Recovery HD system will be able to wipe it.
There is a Firmware password system which is like the PC BIOS password system.
But if someone want your data bad enough and has physical access to your computer or just the HDD they can get whatever they want.
You can set a firmware password, but god forbid if you forget it.
There is a danger in locking your machine down too tight and with Filevault, if you have a problem it can't be fixed.
I've written a user tip here if you need to secure your data more intellignetly using external methods or just certain folders etc.
https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-3045
https://discussions.apple.com/community/notebooks/macbook_pro?view=documents
That will work to stop most normal hackers from erasing your data.
How about Single User mode? 🙂
You can watch the youtube videos of those secure erasing their own boot drives.
Thanks a lot, everyone. I feel a bit of relief here.
Linc Davis: pardon me if I'm not getting this straight, but from what I see if one can access the recovery HD as easy as a Command-R, stealing the data would be a piece of cake using data-recovery software. It's not about crashing the data nor the disk.
DsStore and Shootist007: thanks once again. I've just remembered how to set a bios password, totally forgot about that option. The USB alternative is quite good as well. But there's still the online recovery... :-)
Only the people that know how to access the OnLine Recovery HD system will be able to wipe it.
In other words, that only works against very dumb criminals 😝
HACKINT0SH wrote:
Only the people that know how to access the OnLine Recovery HD system will be able to wipe it.
In other words, that only works against very dumb criminals 😝
Which is what they all are. Have you ever meet a really smart criminal? Really smart people work for a living. If not for anything else but to NOT go to jail.
Even if you remove the recovery partition someone can use a USB boot drive or a OS X installation DVD to start up the system and format your drive. It's not that hard to do. The only thing you can do to protect your data is to encrypt it, and back it up.
Oh, here I am so frustrated again. I've just set the firmware password, but I was expecting something like the BIOS password, meaning it would actually ask me the password right after I turn on the macbook. It only asks for the password if I try to boot from another disk.
Is there any other option besides using FirmwarePassword + Filevault at the same time? I just didn't want to use Filevault at all due to performance issues.
Thanks.
...from what I see if one can access the recovery HD as easy as a Command-R, stealing the data would be a piece of cake using data-recovery software.
No, it wouldn't. You can't access the data in recovery or otherwise without the password or the alternate recovery key, if you set one.
Is there any other option besides using FirmwarePassword + Filevault at the same time?
Any option for what? What are you trying to do? If you think there's some way to stop people from destroying your data, forget it. Anyone who can put hands on the computer can destroy the data. The remedy for that is make multiple backups and store at least one of them off-site.
What's the point if anyone can log into Recovery HD?
