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Is it safe to post log files such as syslog, kernlog, xorg.o.log from /var/log online to ask for help with an Ubuntu system?

Is there any private content in these files that other people should not see?

2 Answers 2

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There can always be private/sensitive info in them. You should review any file before posting it online, including logfiles.

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No. It is not safe to publish your system logs online. While the chance of exploiting the information obtained from them is slim, it is a best practice to anonymize them as best as you can.

Do not ever post logs online without cleaning them of personal data.

That mean that you should remove hostnames, usernames, and IP addresses.

It is your personal responsibility to scrub your logs of any personally identifiable data.

Now, how you might accomplish that is a separate question.

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  • ok, that's about syslog? What about kernlog and Xorg.0.log? Do they have private data?
    – Frank
    Mar 29, 2013 at 9:45
  • Well, somewhat they do. It depends on your definition of private. For the most part, I don't believe that they do. kern.log will contain your host name, but if it is not publicly resolvable name that shouldn't be a problem. It's a good question. Mar 29, 2013 at 9:52
  • thanks, my host name is my home name? How can I know if it's a publicly resolvable name?
    – Frank
    Mar 29, 2013 at 9:59
  • @Frank another good question. If you are sitting at home with a PC that you just built, I wouldn't be concerned. Mar 29, 2013 at 10:07
  • ok thanks :). However I created a script to remove my ubuntu home and system name from log files. I mean the 2 name that appear in terminal, for example "homeuser@ubuntuname". I don't know if there other thing I can remove
    – Frank
    Mar 29, 2013 at 10:17

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