GateKeeper Password Method

Secure and safe?

[mediator88]

I'm a relative beginner to JavaScript but I'm looking for simple (yet effective) scripts with which to secure pages on my website. The Gatekeeper method seems to be rather secure where the source code does not display the password, the password is the filename of the destination. Can anyone help me to understand the potential weaknesses of such a method?

Many thanks in advance

[mehh]

Gatekeeper is known as "Security through obscurity", and is not particularly good. If a cracker got into your server he would have all the passwords in plaintext staring at him/her through his FTP client. When designing secure systems assume that however wants what you know, knows everything about your system. Also never, ever use JavaScript to guard passwords/files. It simply wasn't designed for it. Although it is potentualy possible to design a secure system with JavaScript, I wouldn't bother trying.