Dec 09 9
Carelessness busts Linux security
Posted by Chris Duckett @ 16:07 17 comments
No operating system can ever properly protect a computer from trojans as long as users continue to do silly things. Just because Linux is immune to your standard drive-by viruses it does not mean that it can escape trojan horses.
The latest reminder to be vigilant comes via the users unfortunate enough to download and install a malicious screensaver from gnome-look.org.
Although the malicious content is now removed, the code fragments left show what the trojan's potential may have been.
The program inserted a bash script into /usr/bin/ by using wget and then executing the script. Originally the script's contents were a ping command but this was later changed to:
rm -f /*.*
echo "You see this? It's changed, before it was set to ping?"Thankfully, the delete command above will be mostly ineffectual in Linux systems. But just as Windows users need to be wary of downloads from third-party sites, so too should Linux users not trust non-repository content.
The fix for this "infection" is rather simple, but despite the simplicity and ineffectiveness of this trojan, it should still serve as a Linux security wake-up call. Not for the operating system itself, but for the people using it.
If users continue to trust arbitrary code, then security risks will occur.
Nov 09 24
Get extensions going in Firefox, redux
Posted by Chris Duckett @ 16:35 0 comments
Previously on Null Pointer we looked at getting extensions working in Firefox betas. And that was fine until the fine folks at Firefox changed their minds. ...Read more
Nov 09 17
Microsoft playing nicely with open source
Posted by Chris Duckett @ 12:49 2 comments
Before the Microsoft-centric developer world goes completely gaga at the company's Professional Developer Conference in the coming days, it's worth noting a couple of open source milestones that may have slipped under the radar. ...Read more
Nov 09 9
Google open-sources JavaScript tools
Posted by Chris Duckett @ 10:34 0 comments
Google announced overnight the release and open-sourcing of a trio of tools designed to help JavaScript developers. ...Read more
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