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As much as I would like to agree, having a false sence of security because we run linux is dangerous. Yes, there might not be any (real) virus for linux out there, but I still don't want to be a vector of transmission by giving infected files to other computers.
Of course we wont have any threat if we us something nobody else uses, because, well, nobidy care! Now that allows me to surf the web and laugh at attempts to highjack my IE or even Safari, but that does not mean that my 3 years old unpatched firefox is more secure then the sandboxed,firewalled,antivirused IE 8...

Often, when advocating linux, I ear people saying that it is more secure and does not need antivirus. This is a dangerous idea of false security.

As much as I would like to agree, having a false sence of security because we run linux is dangerous. Yes, there might not be any (real) virus for linux out there, but I still don't want to be a vector of transmission by giving infected files to other computers. Of course we wont have any threat if we us something nobody else uses, because, well, nobidy care! Now that allows me to surf the web and laugh at attempts to highjack my IE or even Safari, but that does not mean that my 3 years old unpatched firefox is more secure then the sandboxed,firewalled,antivirused IE 8... Often, when advocating linux, I ear people saying that it is more secure and does not need antivirus. This is a dangerous idea of false security. "

Firstly, antivirus isn't security. Antivirus is trying to detect and remove a security breach after it has already compromised your system.

Secondly, the correct method of installing software on Linux is via the package manager. Package managers and the associated online repositories allow for a system where any piece of software can be audited and verified by any person on the planet. Anyone at all, not just the person who wrote the software. If everyone on the planet can see what is in a piece of software BEFORE it gets to end users, this makes it very difficult indeed to hide malware within that software.

Finally, one should examine the record. The record is AFAIK impeccable. AFAIK (and no-one has yet been able to contradict this) ... there has never been an end-user's system compromised with malware via installing open source software from package managers.

PS: On Linux, all programs by default run as a normal user. Running firefox on Linux means running it as a normal user, and hence it has no ability at all to modify or create system files or directories. All programs run as a normal user on Linux are effectively sandboxed.

Edited 2009-11-10 23:07 UTC

Satan, you YET don't have to use an AV because Linux is only 01 percent of the desktop market. There is no point in f***ing just one percent of the desktop market when you can target around 90 percent. If the desktop share was very simmilar, I think you might be using an AV permanently.

Back to the subject of the news:

And there are guys over there that say "Windows is insecure" and right after that states "I don't use Windows". How ignorant can you be to make a statement like that? I've seen the same statement from a professor at Carnegie Mellon on the IT Security classes. The worst about this is that a person that gives classes about something usually dictates the culture over it and that is a serious thing.

But we all are missing the point, here. I too agree that security companies spread FUD about a lot of things based on user (lack) of knowledge.

Oh, do you see how things are? Not only the companies do that, anyone misinformed about something can state something "serious". It all depends on WHO says. And if this guy is a somewhat "misinformed" person on a somewhat big company, the information will spread. And eventually get a response and generate some discussions around the web...

So, have fun!

I am not convinced that this is a true reflection of Linux usage. Many people use both windows and linux on a day to day basis, but would probably be considered windows users.



While i have no doubt in my mind that AS linux increases its market share viruses will crop up, it is just not a simple & easy to create a virus to infect Linux as it is to create only that will infect windows.

It's that devil-may-care attitude that got him kicked out of heaven.

Actually, Linux is far more prevalent than 1%, even if we look only at the desktop market.

Linux reportedly has 32% of the netbook market, for example:

http://blogs.computerworld.com/15068/where_is_the_linux_desktop_goi...

http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9140343/Linux_s_share_of_net...

I always drop ClamAV on a box I build. No reason not to help protect the Windows machines one may be sharing files with.

Not using an AV somehow proves that you don't get any virus? Weird. Not like a virus will show a message in the screen telling you "you are now infected".

Exactly, I always wondered how people know they dont have viruses without "ever installing antivirus". That goes for you Mac' guys too!

Edited 2009-11-10 20:01 UTC