Password - login Issue - Please help!!

[chown33]

Brilliant ideas! However, she does not need to restart my computer because the programs are always open the way I left them in the morning. Meaning, she does it all without restarting. One of the times she was demonstrating her feat, the computer "froze", she claimed - but really it was because she tried entering something wrong 3 times so it went to sleep. So she restarted it by pressing the power button and was able to change the password by the first log-in screen. Thus, she can do her thing without restarting, but it also works if she must restart.

I think I know her trick, if you can confirm something.

Go to System Preferences > Security pane > FileVault tab.
Does it say a master password is set or not set for this computer?

The button will say "Change..." if one is set.
It will say "Set Master Password..." if one isn't set.


The master password can be set AND USED regardless of whether FileVault is enabled on an account.

When a master password is set, someone who knows the password can reset any account's password at the login screen. Simply enter the wrong password 3 times, and observe the password hint appear (if enabled). Also observe the "Forgot Password" icon changes to "Reset Password". Click it. You now enter the master password to reset the user's password. The master password hint will also appear (if any).

The master password is not tied to any specific account. It's stored in a completely different way. The FileVault pane won't let you remove a master password once one has been set. AFAIK, you have to completely replace the OS and data in order to remove a master password, or use Reset Password when booted from the DVD. An "Archive and Install" will NOT affect the master password.

 

[ruchiccio]

OMGGGG you ROCK!!!! Thank you x 100000! This MUST be the way she did it!!! It was quite simple for her to figure out my master password because it was my original password that I had used for everything from emails, website accounts, and just about any other place. Even though I had new passwords for my regular admin account, she was still able to do the steps you outlined, simply by knowing my master account!! OMG! Needless to say, I immediately changed my master password! WOW, you don't know how happy you made me!

 

[chown33]

WOW, you don't know how happy you made me!

If the exclamation points are any indicator, I think I can.

So have you told your sister that you've figured out her trick, and taunted her with vile epithets and insults? Or are you going to say nothing and wait to see what happens when she tries it again?

If it's not too late, I suggest the latter, only because she might have other tricks up her sleeve, and you don't want to start anything that could escalate into the nuclear scenario.

 

[ruchiccio]

Exactly! I chose to revel in my own little excitement without sharing it. I want to wait for a cool opportunity to reveal my knowledge! I'm also glad to have learned something new - I've only been macified 3 years ago!

 

[FourCandles]

chown33, nice detective work. Thanks.

 

[yellow]

I think I know her trick, if you can confirm something.

GREAT catch!!