[Gllug] Virus on Linux/Mac

[Christopher Hunter]

On Fri, 2007-09-21 at 09:53 +0100, Peter Childs wrote:

> I'm not so sure, its perfectly possible to write a virus into a
> Openoffice macro and get it to cause trouble in both Windows, Linux
> and MacOS. Also could write it to infect Mozillia and effect Firefox,
> Thunderbird etc etc. might not be able to cause some types of problem
> but cause cause just as much havoc none the less. Linux is not imune
> to viruses its just we are not a primary target... yet..... 

Linux is effectively immune at the OS level (unlike Windows), simply
because of the permissions structure.  The worst an OOo macro virus is
going to do is (maybe) corrupt some files in the user's home directory.

If that macro virus was passed to a Windows machine, it could do
anything it wanted to, wreaking havoc all the way to the kernel -
there's no real way of preventing this in Windows.

Remember - in the Linux world, programmes have to be explicitly be given
permission to run.  

Windows often takes that choice away from the user and just runs stuff
anyway.  Also the Windows user is unlikely to understand the choice if
offered, which is why the "security" features in Vista are worse than
useless.  The Vista user has been told that his "operating system" is
"secure - the most secure MS have ever released", so he feels confident
to turn off all the irritating "security" nag dialogues that he's
presented with every few minutes...

There are some really nasty viruses already especially built for Vista
users.  These are particularly effective as the "anti-virus" included in
Vista is fundamentally broken, and the addition of other "anti-virus"
software is explicitly forbidden by Vista!

They're getting what they deserve...

C.


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