Linux isn’t affected by Viruses!!! Why?

[kooolrock]

The closest thing Unix/Linux has to this is that for many years some programs required Joe User or Joe Users process to be "root" (the master user with command over all the machines processes) and these programs would automatically do this for Joe. Many Unix/Linux security breeches were based on this hole. Today, most of these programs have been closed down, and this trick doesnt work anymore. Of course, if you run your Linux computer as root, you too can be hammered, but the key difference is that in almost all Linux distributions, default users do not run as root.

In Windows, though, any user can always act as root for their machines core programs and MyDoom uses this opening to add %system%/shimgapi.dll, %temp%/Message and %system%/taskmon.exe. Taskmon.exe is a core Windows 98 family file, and Windows lets a user-level program change this, or in the case of the NT/2000/XP family, add this file! This is security at its worst.

Adding insult to injury, Windows also lets this user-level program add keys and values to the Windows....Read this one (http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,4149,1515531,00.asp)

[|{urse]

Linux doesnt have (?) viruses because the system is halfway secure and writing a virus for a halfway secure systems takes programming finesse, people who write viruses are low level noobs and do not know how to write programs but definitely know how to break them. Windows isn't even halfway secure (no your spybot won't save you now)(omg whats the Administrator password by default?). now that said, most people who like linux admire or at least aspire to write code, these are creative people who don't feel cheated by their operating system, also wheres the real financial damage in infecting a linux users home pc? We will just reinstall for free and giggle a bit.

[anantshri]

well my opinion in this regard is different.

well there do exist viruses for linux also, plus rootkits and alot more penetration tools exist to devastade linux machines, but the only thing that put them out is open source nature.


as well as for general information VIRUS writter's are not l33t's they are extremly capable person's working the worng way's,

also if i put a virus programmer's hat and i think to create a virus, for today my main aim will be windows just because of the seer number of user's using it, hence chances of spreading the problem is a lot large,

and who said linux is halfway secured,
secure is a very dangerous word, it only applies to the owner's mind set,

If i keep the best kernel and whole system uptodate but still keep firewall off then i am no more then a fool, but this actually happen's

[Xbehave]

market share. It is however true that unix systems are harder to infect because they are inherently more secure, but the truth of the matter is that if enough people use linux with the right set of dependancies to run a virus then linux will be affected by them.

Although it would still be pretty hard to infect a hardend debian/gentoo system without asking for permition.

[Rhapsody]

I think asking why Linux doesn't get any viruses is like asking why your cat never caught a cold from you despite sleeping right next to you all the time. Most viruses are written for Windows, with some others written for Mac OS X. Viruses written for Linux are very rare, so people don't encounter them very often.

[armandh]

vista is 2 steps forward and one step back.
while the admin password must now be entered to install updates, and changes
every program is trying to update and thus pre conditioning the user
to provide a password for anything that says update.

at least something different than Ubuntu's unified update would be noticed by an ubuntu user [I hope]