Interactive shells in emacs: a security problem?

[Spencer Garrett]

In article <6973 at sdcsvax.UCSD.Edu>, mattson at beowulf.ucsd.edu (Jim Mattson) writes:
-> It seems that this is an inherent problem in the way 4BSD programs use ptys.
-> If the program does not run setuid root, it cannot guarantee the security
-> of the pty connection.  Maybe there should be an ioctl that allows a
-> regular user to make himself/herself the owner of an open pty connection.
-> That seems really awful, though.  Are there other solutions?

Sure.  Just set TIOCEXCL on the master side when you open it, and refuse
to spin off a shell until that call succeeds.