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Ask HN: Why does the US Visa application website do a port-scan of my network?

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Re: Ask HN: Why does the US Visa application website do a port-scan of my network?

#121

Post by layer8 »

gethly wrote: post #38

Just a little side note - in this context, it makes sense if the website tries to connect to a local port because you might be running a card reader(ie. terminal). This is how it works with some(all?) EU countries that have a chip in their ID cards, or even vehicle registration cards, which you can use to access sensitive information or perform certain administrative tasks on government websites. Although, from perso…

It requires installing a local service that bridges between the browser and the smartcard driver (what Java applets did in earlier years). The web app then communicates with the service via requests on localhost. The card-specific driver and bridge service are often bundled together for installation.

Re: Ask HN: Why does the US Visa application website do a port-scan of my network?

#122

Post by speakfreely »

giantg2 wrote: post #104
jimz wrote: post #92

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[flagged]

I don't see how blaming the pre-existing website on the current administration makes sense.

It's not new. Rabid ideologues on the other side blamed Obama for things that pre-dated his administration, as well. Some people just can't be rational when it comes to politicians they don't like.

Re: Ask HN: Why does the US Visa application website do a port-scan of my network?

#123

Post by jazzypants »

cromka wrote: post #84
rwmj wrote: post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You might be making the assumption that the US wants to make the process easier.

You use the same system for Business visas. Hard to imagine US wouldn’t want those as easy as possible.

You don't have a good enough imagination for how stupid our current leadership really is.

Re: Ask HN: Why does the US Visa application website do a port-scan of my network?

#124

Post by layer8 »

causal wrote: post #105
palmfacehn wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Routers with vulnerable URLs. You can search for: "router" "authentication bypass".

Isn't CORS supposed to prevent this?

CORS doesn’t prevent requests (i.e. GET requests from IMG tags, or XHR preflight requests), it only prevents web apps from processing the response if the responding server doesn’t agree. And a simple GET or even OPTIONS request can be enough to exploit vulnerabilities in routers and other local devices.

Re: Ask HN: Why does the US Visa application website do a port-scan of my network?

#125

Post by ddlsmurf »

daveidol wrote: post #107
dd_xplore wrote: post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is that available in lite version too? Now that the origin js being phased out

It’s only being phased out on Chrome, by Google.

Yes, to make us safer, now you enable developer mode and disable signature checking to install it locally, thanks Google

Re: Ask HN: Why does the US Visa application website do a port-scan of my network?

#126

Post by cogogo »

bluGill wrote: post #109
cogogo wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My wife, a green card holder, applied for citizenship in April and was naturalized yesterday (from an EU country). Not that I don’t believe it could be true but where are you getting the 3-4yr timeline? If that’s accurate she/we may have dodged a massive bullet.

Spouses always get better treatment as there is a voter who would be mad otherwise. They check for scam marriages but otherwise hurry the process through - if they don't a voter contacts their congressman to push the process. That voter will also likely know a lot of other voters and thus influence the next election while someone not married is unlikely to have that local network to use.

I would love to see data that backs this up. While definitely plausible the pathway she followed to naturalization was based on time in country and not our marriage. I didn’t need to push but I’ve generally found my congressman (who is also almost our neighbor) to be pretty unresponsive on any other issue.

My understanding - which may not be correct - is the length of the process primarily depends on your country of origin and secondarily on how you are eligible. Very interested in any source showing that a relatively normal process has pushed out from months to years.

Re: Ask HN: Why does the US Visa application website do a port-scan of my network?

#127

Post by filoleg »

bluGill wrote: post #109
cogogo wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My wife, a green card holder, applied for citizenship in April and was naturalized yesterday (from an EU country). Not that I don’t believe it could be true but where are you getting the 3-4yr timeline? If that’s accurate she/we may have dodged a massive bullet.

Spouses always get better treatment as there is a voter who would be mad otherwise. They check for scam marriages but otherwise hurry the process through - if they don't a voter contacts their congressman to push the process. That voter will also likely know a lot of other voters and thus influence the next election while someone not married is unlikely to have that local network to use.

This is patently false for one reason - once someone has a U.S. green card and has met the residency requirement to apply for citizenship, the application form and process are the same for everyone, regardless of how they got their green card (through work, marriage, asylum, investment, etc.).

Once you are eligible to apply, the whole process is basically form N400->biometrics->interview (just doublechecking your name and other paper info, takes 5 minutes)->civics test->ceremony.

However, the timelines and process for getting the green card itself is different depending on the nature of your visa, and they will indeed try to check for scam marriages before you get your green card (if you were applying for it through the marriage visa).

Re: Ask HN: Why does the US Visa application website do a port-scan of my network?

#128

Post by dfxm12 »

rwmj wrote: post #68
mrtksn wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That would be quite clever for an incredibly horrible website. The other day my SO, who is a Turkish citizen, was filling up her visa application and after half an hour of meticulous form filling the system just kick her out. I think the session times out or something. If you haven't created an account or you haven't write down the current application ID everything is lost. In the process she was also directed to a n…

You might be making the assumption that the US wants to make the process easier.

I'd invoke Hanlon's razor, but in this case, it's certainly both malice and stupidity...

Re: Ask HN: Why does the US Visa application website do a port-scan of my network?

#129

Post by wat10000 »

giantg2 wrote: post #104
jimz wrote: post #92

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[flagged]

I don't see how blaming the pre-existing website on the current administration makes sense.

Indeed, the real problem is a pervasive attitude that the USA is the best country in the world by far and everyone is clamoring to get in. We don't really care if foreigners come or not, and they'll come anyway, so why bother making the process friendly?

Re: Ask HN: Why does the US Visa application website do a port-scan of my network?

#130

Post by DaSHacka »

reaperducer wrote: post #111
giantg2 wrote: post #104

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't see how blaming the pre-existing website on the current administration makes sense.

I don't see how blaming the pre-existing website on the current administration makes sense. Many federal web sites were very quickly altered or replaced by the new administration. This is common. Work begins on some web sites immediately after the election. For example, when a new president is sworn in, the White House web site flips immediately. More to the parent poster's point, it has been widely reported in the l…

So you claim the visa website was also changed by this administration?
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