RIP SSLv3
The Internet community officially banishes the notoriously unsafe Secure Sockets Layer protocol.
The venerable “secure” network protocol Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) v3 has met its end. SSL has co-existed on the Internet alongside its presumed successor TLS for many years, even though experts have long warned of its shortcomings. A recent rash of high-profile incidents, however, including the famous POODLE exploit, have finally caused the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) to take action. Request for Comment (RFC) 7568 “Deprecating Secure Sockets Layer Version 3.0” officially states the requirement that SSLv3 should not be supported.
The RFC is unusually blunt, with its all-cap stipulation that “SSLv3 MUST NOT be used.” Although most systems today support the safer TLS, many provide fallback support for SSLv3 if an SSL connection is requested. Attackers have perfected the technique of requesting an SSL connection then use one of the many exploits associated with SSL. RFC 7568 states that “Any party receiving a Hello message with the version set to {3,00} MUST respond with a ‘protocol_version’ alert message and close the connection.”
Many OS and application vendors have already turned off support for SSLv3 through patches and security updates.
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
-
Plasma 6.3 Now Available
Plasma desktop v6.3 has a couple of pretty nifty tricks up its sleeve.
-
LibreOffice 25.2 Has Arrived
If you've been hoping for a release that offers more UI customizations, you're in for a treat.
-
TuxCare Has a Big AlmaLinux 9 Announcement in Store
TuxCare announced it has successfully completed a Security Technical Implementation Guide for AlmaLinux OS 9.
-
First Release Candidate for Linux Kernel 6.14 Now Available
Linus Torvalds has officially released the first release candidate for kernel 6.14 and it includes over 500,000 lines of modified code, making for a small release.
-
System76 Refreshes Meerkat Mini PC
If you're looking for a small form factor PC powered by Linux, System76 has exactly what you need in the Meerkat mini PC.
-
Gnome 48 Alpha Ready for Testing
The latest Gnome desktop alpha is now available with plenty of new features and improvements.
-
Wine 10 Includes Plenty to Excite Users
With its latest release, Wine has the usual crop of bug fixes and improvements, along with some exciting new features.
-
Linux Kernel 6.13 Offers Improvements for AMD/Apple Users
The latest Linux kernel is now available, and it includes plenty of improvements, especially for those who use AMD or Apple-based systems.
-
Gnome 48 Debuts New Audio Player
To date, the audio player found within the Gnome desktop has been meh at best, but with the upcoming release that all changes.
-
Plasma 6.3 Ready for Public Beta Testing
Plasma 6.3 will ship with KDE Gear 24.12.1 and KDE Frameworks 6.10, along with some new and exciting features.