NEWS
NEWS
Updates on technologies, trends, and tools.
Dyreza Malware is Back
The Proofpoint security firm reports that attackers have shifted the focus of the powerful Dyreza malware tool to operate outside of the banking sector. Dyreza gained fame as a man-in-the-middle banking trojan used to steal passwords for online banking accounts. Proofpoint reports that Dyreza is increasing attacking fulfillment services for online shopping sites.
According to a report in the Register, Dyreza uses "Word macros to compromise phished users in what is an old attack vector that has gained latent popularity."
Kernel Developer Matthew Garrett Forks the Linux Kernel
Prominent Linux kernel developer Matthew Garrett announced he is forking the Linux kernel. Garrett, who was instrumental in exposing the problems with Linux compatibility in UEFI secure boot a few years ago, says he is frustrated with the disrespect and argumentative tone of the Linux development community.
In his personal blog, Garrett writes, "I remember having to deal with interminable arguments over the naming of an interface because Linus has an undying hatred of BSD securelevel, or having my name forever associated with the deepthroating of Microsoft because Linus couldn't be bothered asking questions about the reasoning behind a design before trashing it."
Kernel leader Linus Torvalds has come under fire in the past for using harsh language and negative criticism. Another noted kernel developer, Sarah Sharp, who was the Linux kernel coordinator for the FOSS Outreach Program for Women and maintainer of the USB 3.0 host controller driver, also dropped out of the kernel community recently for similar reasons. In her own blog post, Sharp does not single out Linus specifically but takes on the whole kernel culture. "I could not work with people who helpfully encouraged newcomers to send patches, and then argued that maintainers should be allowed to spew whatever vile words they needed to in order to maintain radical emotional honesty. I did not want to work professionally with people who were allowed to get away with subtle sexist or homophobic jokes … ."
Time will tell if these recent defections will cause a change in kernel community attitudes. Both Sharp and Garrett seem to doubt that reform will come anytime soon. The presence of an alternative kernel development tree maintained by a programmer of Garrett's stature and experience certainly adds a new dimension to the drama. Forks happen from time to time in the open source community, which is both the curse and the magic of Free Software. The question is, does Garrett really want to start an alternative development effort, or does he just want to implement his own changes without the tension and theater of the Linux kernel development war zone.
Bugzilla Bug
The Bugzilla bug database system has a flaw that could allow an attacker to access the database and read about potential exploits before the patch is released to the public. The problem affects Bugzilla implementations that use email-based permissions. Login names longer than 127 characters are "silently truncated in MySQL," which could allow an attacker to assign permissions to an email address that is different from the address originally requested.
The fix for this bug is included in the Bugzilla 4.2.15, 4.4.10, and 5.0.1 releases. All Bugzilla users are encouraged to upgrade.
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
Juno Computers Launches Another Linux Laptop
If you're looking for a powerhouse laptop that runs Ubuntu, the Juno Computers Neptune 17 v6 should be on your radar.
-
ZorinOS 17.1 Released, Includes Improved Windows App Support
If you need or desire to run Windows applications on Linux, there's one distribution intent on making that easier for you and its new release further improves that feature.
-
Linux Market Share Surpasses 4% for the First Time
Look out Windows and macOS, Linux is on the rise and has even topped ChromeOS to become the fourth most widely used OS around the globe.
-
KDE’s Plasma 6 Officially Available
KDE’s Plasma 6.0 "Megarelease" has happened, and it's brimming with new features, polish, and performance.
-
Latest Version of Tails Unleashed
Tails 6.0 is based on Debian 12 and includes GNOME 43.
-
KDE Announces New Slimbook V with Plenty of Power and KDE’s Plasma 6
If you're a fan of KDE Plasma, you'll be thrilled to hear they've announced a new Slimbook with an AMD CPU and the latest version of KDE Plasma desktop.
-
Monthly Sponsorship Includes Early Access to elementary OS 8
If you want to get a glimpse of what's in the pipeline for elementary OS 8, just set up a monthly sponsorship to help fund its continued existence.
-
DebConf24 to be Held in South Korea
Busan will be the location of the latest DebConf running July 28 through August 4
-
Fedora Unleashes Atomic Desktops
Fedora has combined its solid distribution with rpm-ostree system to make it possible to deliver a new family of Fedora spins, called Fedora Atomic Desktops.
-
Bootloader Vulnerability Affects Nearly All Linux Distributions
The developers of shim have released a version to fix numerous security flaws, including one that could enable remote control execution of malicious code under certain circumstances.