Linux and Mac OS X targeted by malware writers
This article at ars technica, Linux and Mac OS X get some love (?) from malware writers, reports: "Over the past few days, a couple of exploits for Linux and Mac OS X began circulating. Some of you may have seen e-mails purporting to be from the Red Hat Security Team. The e-mail contains a link to fedora-redhat.com and prompts users to download and install a patch for fileutils-1.0.6, stating that a vulnerability could 'allow a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code with root privileges.' The 'patch' actually contains malicious code that will compromise the system it is run on. "

For a long time, MAC and Linux users have smiled smugly as those who use Windows wrung their hands and whined about viruses and the vulnerabilities of their operating system. Now it appears that even folks on those admittedly more secure systems may not be spared from attack.

The author concludes the article by commenting: "The central lesson is this: no matter which platform you are on, being vigilant about security is the best way to ensure that your machine remains clean of worms, viri, and Trojan horses."
- posted by Perry @ 8:13 AM