Linux File Permissions
Every file in Linux has an owner and permissions controlling who can read, write, or execute it.
ls -la shows permissions like this:
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 42 Aug 30 12:00 secret.txt
Breaking it down:
- rw- = owner can read and write
- r-- = group can read only
- r-- = everyone else can read only
Misconfigurations
Administrators sometimes set permissions incorrectly, leaving sensitive files readable by everyone.
Your Mission
A file containing credentials has been left world-readable by mistake. Find it and read it.
Look in /etc and /var/www for files with interesting names that you should not normally be able to read.
Command
ls -la /etc | grep -v "root root"
This shows files not owned by root — potential misconfigurations.