Could it be? A virus? Windows AND Linux??

[mikek147]

As if we didn't have enough to worry about. Check out this news item. -mk

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If it ain't broke, fix it till it is.

[Murmandamus]

"is not destructive and does not appear to have infected any computers yet" If thats so, then how did they detect it? Sound fishy to me.

Being a typically cynical Aussie I'd say their just trying to get into the Linux market with some good ol' FUD.

[mikek147]

Whether or not this particular virus is real, the concept is valid. Since the Intel processor is the heart of both MS Wind and Linux, well written assembly code could infect both. Look here for a view at the assembler source, then you decide. Have a good day. -mk

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If it ain't broke, fix it till it is.

[warchild]

Although its really not a huge problem right now, cross-platform virii will be a problem soon. Like you said, code written for the intel architecture will run under both win32 and linux (or any *nix that runs on the intel platform, Solaris, *BSD etc.).

Why will it become a larger problem? Just my opinion, but the use of virus detection programs under linux is minimal if at all. Windows on the other hand, sees a huge usage of AV programs -- you have to be an idiot to not use on IMO. Currently, the largest threat to linux boxen is the root exploit. Exploit a rpc service, find a weak password or encryption scheme here, or whatever. Most of these problems are fixed by the vendor or patches/fixes are released by a third party. But picture this. How many times have you (either as root or as a regular user) downloaded some program and just ran it? Come on, be honest! I admit there have been many times late at night that I've downloaded some random program (both source and binaries), and compiled/ran 'em without giving it a second thought. Oh wait, what if someone decided to put a little assembly code in there? The possibilities are endless. If the code is run without some level of caution, you are just asking to get into some trouble. If unknown/untrusted code is run (at any privledge level basically), how can you trust your system? In my opinion, you can't.

Solutions: If its a personal box, stay current. Subscribe to the mailing lists for your distro. Get to know your system. Check your logs. Only download sources or binaries from trusted sources (i.e., www.freshmeat.net might be a bit more reliable than evildude.warez.org) . Common sense.

Just my opinion.