Slashdot Mirror
Is Linux as Secure as We'd Like to Think?
man_of_mr_e asks: "With all the recent brouhaha about Blaster and Sobig, there's been a lot of talk about how poor Windows security is, especially compared to the Linux we all know and love. But is this really true? The website defacement archive at Zone-h shows that Linux accounts for 61% of the defacements in the last 24 hours (note, this figure changes, so it might be different when you view it). An analysis of the last few weeks of their archive shows a similar percentage of exploited Linux systems. Note also that the 'Unknown' category is rather high, and certainly contains at least some Linux systems, further increasing the percentage. Why is this? Are we just deluding ourselves about our own security? Could there be a Linux 'Blaster' just waiting to happen?" While "defacements" don't necessarily mean "root level break-in", sometimes getting your foot in the door is enough. If this happens, wouldn't Linux then be just as exploitable as Windows? Are there other reasons why the likelihood of a "Sobig" or an "ILUVYOU" would be lower for Linux than Windows?
SLASHDOT has various personalities, and I hope to be the first to document them all:
,rsm jpe jstf od yjsy"
Project Manager - dude was an ex-coder (visual basic 3.0) and now is a low-level bottom-feeder working through slashdot so he has some vague ideo of the issues with technology.
Anonymous - dude is angry. Angry about something but not sure what. Against everything: hates all religions, colors, air.
Modder - points Nazi. God's irony incarnate. Why are those who have the least leadership skills always given a clipboard? Like getting a bathroom pass from the farting-kid.
Grandpa - dude is old. Waaaaayyy old. Like grandpa old. Runs a plain-text website. Talks about the early days of Usenet and punch cards. Senile.
The kid - 13 year old. Thinks coding full-time sounds like a wonderful career. Masturbates at Guiness Record Book pace.
The ranchero - Indian or Pakistani. Got his full-service corporate Internet access in Bombay or Kurachi and his call-center job. Has his PhD in math or science, feels he somehow part of the global village.
The survivalist - bro feels like if you dicuss something over and over somehow it will all be okay -- like Microsoft disappearing. Can't understand the cat is already out the bag and has humped everything in sight.
Her - d00d is a chick. A chick! Runs her blog, thinks she's a programmer.
The speller - d00d is seriously into grammer and spelling. On a site where the debate is around ideas, brother-man likes to make sure the semicolon is in the right place.
The Oz - australian d00d. "I come from the land down under, where women go and make thunder"
The napster - d00d is seriously into alternative-rock and the stealing thereof. Talks intelligently about music like one might discuss a Winslow Homer or the Illiad.
Lost in Translation - d00d cannot for the freaking life of anything find the home-row keys. o
The scientist - d00d is seriously into fractals, 3-d Math, fluid dynamics, cutting-edge chaos theory -- allbeit from afar because basic physics and calculus escape him.
The microsoft - d00d is seriously against MS. Can't stand the cursor, the fonts, the windows, the design, the icons, the sounds. Uses it extensively to play games.
The thinker - writes long missives. Attempts at humor, sarcasim, wit, and pun are laudable; posts two-stories ago.
Ben Franklin - d00d loves chaos. Every judicial ruling is "another nail in the coffin of freedom". Has third-grade perspective of common law.
The formater - d00d loves to use *HTML* *TAGS* to *CREATE* posting that are *REALLY* *GHAY*
"This isn't a study in computer science, its a study in human behavior"
Hey- since you are just making up words (virii), why stop at 2 i's? Why not 3 or 4, as in viriiii? That looks cooler.
Doesn't matter, according to this guy Linux is a fake OS anyway:5 27.html
http://www.df-21.net/ubb/Forum1/HTML/002
I see. So by making the United States "more secure" with the USA PATRIOT Act, we've been prevented access to such features as civil liberties. Sorry for the off-topic post, but it's the first thing that came to mind when I read that.
'Q' is for Dr. Tran