A few years ago I found a text (probably as image) where somebody ‘tried’ to run a virus on linux. It went something like this:
Wanted to install a virus on Ubuntu, but it was only available as an aur package. Tried converting. Didn’t work … Tried
make virus, but didn’t work. Upgraded cmake, tried again, but some libraries were missing.Tried installing libraries, but they were very outdated and I couldn’t find proper versions.
Checked the source to see what the libs were doing and replaced them.
and so on.
Does someone know what I’m talking about and possibly has the source?
Yes. No.
Not sure how to actually post an image, but this I think is one.
Gripping the bitcoin wallet and paying $5 out of pity is my favorite part :)
Image in post or comment:
You can add alt text in the square brackets, but many apps won’t show it.
This then renders as
This!
Does anyone have an idea what would happen if someone run a Windows virus with Wine ?
Can only access Wine’s directory not your actual Linux files
That’s just not true in many cases. It can usually access your home directory.
Nope. With a stock wine prefix it can access anything you have the permission to access. Your FS root is mapped to the
Z:\drive by default.And the viruses that write themselves to the boot sectors of the hard drive?
I suppose if there was a wine config that had an appropriate dosdevice setup for the boot sector then it’d be able to write to it, but wine doesn’t need to boot so I don’t think that would do anything.
They simply can’t because its designed to do that on windows not on Linux because they are different. Plus use ClamAV and you should be good. (I am not an expert in this)
Some interesting answers.
Please stop oretending Linux was imune to viruses. A virus can do many things, perhaps even more on Linux than it could on Windows.
Not running an AV only borks because viruses nowerdays are much less common, especially if you follow some best practices (Adblock, no piracy sites, recognize sketchy stuff).
Definitely more, it’s not 2001 anymore.
Honestly, I use Linux and I need VirusTotal scans for side-loading .deb packages. It’s because I’m not a coding expert, auditing every code of the packages before installing it. So, I think it’s myth that Linux do not need antivirus or anti-malware. We have other different approaches too such as using anti-malware DNS servers.
Does this work? I would think scanning a *.package would only assess that content. Wouldn’t something malicious likely be in the code or dependency it could call via some form of get request? That .deb package itself could be completely “safe” until it calls a git clone <URL> to then run something malicious.
I think this would be more likely to work for appimage or flatpak, though the same approach could compromise the validity of the scan. Am I thinking too hard, or did I just miss the point?
A single .sh file with exec permission that asks for sudo will easily download appimage keyloggers and then set a cron job to run it every X time to keep it alive and sends it all to whatever remote location. Or whatever else you let the appimage do.
95% of regular users will double click that, and then write their pass in the popup without blinking twice and that will work in most Linux systems.
Most viruses don’t target Linux, sure, but that’s wishful thinking. Always be creful with what you run.
if you’re not at least running clamav you’re gonna regret it!
Linux has viruses. Always protect yourself…
Just have backups and know what you’re downloading.
What if I know I’m downloading a virus?
I mean, that logic also applies to Windows and Mac. This meme is just stroking the Linux ego.
Yes, that also works in Windows and Mac. When I still dual booted Windows, I gave up on anti-viruses and just didn’t download suspicious things and used Firefox with all the regular blockers. Never had a problem.
I just switched to linux and totally forgot about this. Do I really not need one? 99% of what I do is steam gaming anyway so I’m not too worried, worst case I just format and reinstall, but still…
Most malware is not Linux compatible. However the stuff that is will fuck you over very hard. Get clamav set a cron
@Forester @Screen_Shatter not sure it’s good idea to use such product. Today they are blocking me, tomorrow they will block you…
Do you? Do you even bother to read the error on the page?
Nah just enable and enforce apparmor, use bubblewrap for the browser or unknown sources. Clamav is mostly useful for ingress detection on like email or ftp servers
Duly noted, will look into it, thanks!
‘The best anti-virus is common sense [current year]’ - was a meme more than decade ago and is still true. Linux is not safer than any other OS.
The reason why people think otherwise is because statistically, when bad actors release malware it’s made for the OS with the largest market share. Which for computers, is still Windows by a landslide.
Linux is not safer than any other OS.
Apache web servers were, are, and will continue to be common thanks to their cheapness and ease of configuration. And malware (particularly and most recently coinminers) have been a plague on Apache for at least the last few years.
“Nobody’s come after my bespoke Linux kernel” is just preaching security-through-obscurity. Which - hey - if you’re running a Mint box to host videos on Jellyfin, sure. The absolute worst case scenario is being forced to re-download 1000 hours of tv/movies/music you forgot you even had. But if you’re doing any kind of business application or - god forbid - enterprise level application development, you might as well post a “Kick Me” sign on your admin’s back as tell your team that Linux is virus-proof.
If you are a Halo fan or have ever played Halo reach. The only thing I can imagine is the slip space rupture detected scene except for every time instead of slip space. It’s Yara heuristic detected. https://youtu.be/Q_4i-yOUmXY
better be safe than sorry so get Clamav and scan your system frequently
As someone who may obtain games and shows/movies through less than rights holder approved methods, ClamAV is a necessity.
Not just for the pirate though. If you share any files between nix and win OS’s. I wouldn’t want to share any computer std with those I care for, friend, family or business.
There are also cool tools like
chkrootkitandrkhunterthat might come in handy.
Linux users are always one bad app from being completely scammed
Wayland and Flatpak actually somewhat protects you though, as long as you know to NOT give it the permissions to read all of /home
As long as you know the foot guns and know why flatpak is important…isnt a good starting point.
What anti-virus sudo you use?
Everyone should think about threats to their data. Cloud backup and laptops better be encrypted, services with open ports be shielded. Linux viruses do exist, especially for android and routers. But also whatever system has an outdated dokuwiki open in the wild is a welcome addition to a botnet. The value of a botnet is in number of infected systems and you don’t need root access to mine monero or take part in a ddos on a machine. Linux security is sincerely undervalued. Selinux, the grsec kernel patches, chrootjail, tripwire… do exist, but are a hassle to setup and maintain. The new container options are nice (docker or flatpack) having your webbrowser contained is not a bad idea.
Update your router, your desktop is spoiled for updates. I stop my 1 am ramblings here.
