Would it be so difficult to place somewhere in an "Operating System" tagged posting which operating system was affected? Slashdot folks really might have more than one OS in their areas and it would be nice to know which is at risk right at the top.
If malware does attack your linux computer, rest assured that only all of your personal content in your home directory will be wiped. The actual OS and software that you can download and install again for free is protected.
Actually Linux is more vulnerable than Windows to this kind of attack because most Linux systems do not implement any kind of secure boot procedure.
These rootkits work by replacing some parts of the OS that are loaded very early in the boot process, things like core SATA drivers needed to read in the rest of the OS or parts of the kernel. That makes them very hard to detect and remove, because any software running on the OS that tries to read those files can be supplied with a clean copy by the rootkit. Eve
by Anonymous Coward writes:
on Friday June 29, 2018 @11:20AM (#56865588)
These rootkits work by replacing some parts of the OS that are loaded very early in the boot process, things like core SATA drivers needed to read in the rest of the OS or parts of the kernel. That makes them very hard to detect and remove, because any software running on the OS that tries to read those files can be supplied with a clean copy by the rootkit. Even the kernel can't easily figure out if the SATA driver or the filesystem handler is really giving it the true data or a fake copy.
And isn't that the point of Linux? You don't touch the OS at all from Linux's user stand point. If you install any program, it should come from a (trusted) repository, not simply download from a site. When install, you will need to enter root password if the installation requires changes in critical system. If you are a user, you shouldn't be able to do that but rather install under your own privilege; thus, no OS. If you are the admin, then you deserve it because you should know better to be an admin. That's why most people who use Linux know what they are doing.
Microsoft Windows only (Score:5, Insightful)
Re: (Score:5, Informative)
If you don't see an operating system listed, you can rest assured that it's windows.
Re: (Score:0)
Yeah or maybe just read the article.
Meanwhile, Linux users rest easy assuming no harm can penetrate Fortress Europe.
Re: Microsoft Windows only (Score:2, Insightful)
If malware does attack your linux computer, rest assured that only all of your personal content in your home directory will be wiped. The actual OS and software that you can download and install again for free is protected.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Actually Linux is more vulnerable than Windows to this kind of attack because most Linux systems do not implement any kind of secure boot procedure.
These rootkits work by replacing some parts of the OS that are loaded very early in the boot process, things like core SATA drivers needed to read in the rest of the OS or parts of the kernel. That makes them very hard to detect and remove, because any software running on the OS that tries to read those files can be supplied with a clean copy by the rootkit. Eve
Re: Microsoft Windows only (Score:1)
These rootkits work by replacing some parts of the OS that are loaded very early in the boot process, things like core SATA drivers needed to read in the rest of the OS or parts of the kernel. That makes them very hard to detect and remove, because any software running on the OS that tries to read those files can be supplied with a clean copy by the rootkit. Even the kernel can't easily figure out if the SATA driver or the filesystem handler is really giving it the true data or a fake copy.
And isn't that the point of Linux? You don't touch the OS at all from Linux's user stand point. If you install any program, it should come from a (trusted) repository, not simply download from a site. When install, you will need to enter root password if the installation requires changes in critical system. If you are a user, you shouldn't be able to do that but rather install under your own privilege; thus, no OS. If you are the admin, then you deserve it because you should know better to be an admin. That's why most people who use Linux know what they are doing.