A series of intrusions into the heart of the Linux Kernel.org servers in late August that went undetected for some 17 days is still shrouded in mystery. If Linux developers know how the breach occurred, they are not saying. They also are keeping mum on the extent of any damage the break-in caused. The attackers apparently compromised the servers the Linux Kernel.org uses to maintain and distribute the Linux operating system. A second breach was discovered on Sept. 8 that compromised the servers for Linux Foundation infrastructure.
"Linux runs from the same Linux kernel."
Not true. There are four boxes in my house, running a Linux kernel. The attack vectors used to root them would by necessity be different, because they don't all use the same kernels. While three of them are quite SIMILAR, they are not the SAME. And, the other one would be even more difficult to break into, because it was compiled on my own computer, with some "enhancements". Building native, without any unnecessary modules really decreases the attack surface. An attacker can't take advantage of code that just isn't there!
Loading ...
That Was the Breach That Was
Posted by: Jack M. Germain September 27, 2011 05:00 AMA series of intrusions into the heart of the Linux Kernel.org servers in late August that went undetected for some 17 days is still shrouded in mystery. If Linux developers know how the breach occurred, they are not saying. They also are keeping mum on the extent of any damage the break-in caused. The attackers apparently compromised the servers the Linux Kernel.org uses to maintain and distribute the Linux operating system. A second breach was discovered on Sept. 8 that compromised the servers for Linux Foundation infrastructure.
Not true. There are four boxes in my house, running a Linux kernel. The attack vectors used to root them would by necessity be different, because they don't all use the same kernels. While three of them are quite SIMILAR, they are not the SAME. And, the other one would be even more difficult to break into, because it was compiled on my own computer, with some "enhancements". Building native, without any unnecessary modules really decreases the attack surface. An attacker can't take advantage of code that just isn't there!