Re: creating backups in temporary directories

[Sven Joachim <svenjoac@gmx.de>]

Stefan Monnier <monnier@iro.umontreal.ca> writes:

>>> Suggestions:
>>> 1) make that the default value - why not write backups in /tmp?
>
>> Because making a "backup" for a file in a place that is regularly
>> cleaned out is creating an illusion of security.
>
> Worse yet: creating backup files in /tmp would be a security hole:
> some other user seeing you're currently editing /tmp/foo could create
> a symlink /tmp/foo~ to some interesting place and then when you save your
> file the backup could be placed at that interesting place chosen by
> the attacker.

Really?  I've just tried this (with a symlink in ~/tmp instead of
/tmp), and Emacs removed the symlink for the backup before saving the
file.  Are there circumstances where it might not do this?