RE: Viruses

[PQBON <sdeutsch ece ucdavis edu>]

On  6 Jul, Roger Vaughn banged into a keyboard:
> Excellent, well-considered reply!
> 
> Perhaps the offending gentleman would like to consider that most virus
> traffic originated on UNIX-based systems many years ago, long before Windows
> became popular.  Until recently, in fact, the most damaging virii, worms,
> call them what you will, attacked internet mail (traditionally served by
> UNIX boxes) and UNIX systems in general.  Recall the Morris worm which
> brought the 'net to its knees by overloading every system it could reach.
> Root access was not necessary - the worm merely spawned itself mercilessly
> until processors could handle no more.
> 
> Windows is the more popular target currently only because of its
> proliferation and the pure fun of MS bashing.  Expect the *serious* virus
> coders to go after Linux soon.  (And consider that Linux is a much simpler
> target since it is more highly standardized the traditional UNIXes and runs
> on limited set of hardware.)
> 
> Perhaps the gentleman would also like to consider that not everyone thinks
> the way he does.  Virus coders *do* in fact go in for wanton data
> destruction for the pure thrill of it.
> 
> rog

A worm is NOT a virus... yes *nix is subject to worms/trojans/etc.. but
not really viruses....

The best virus would have to start set uid.... then it would have to
change the file it wanted setuid... then it would have infect that
file... and so on... so the only real hole that could be exploited is
installing infected binaries setuid... 
-- 

the PQBON <Will Deutsch>

I still maintain the point that designing a monolithic kernel in 1991 is a
fundamental error.  Be thankful you are not my student.  You would not get a
high grade for such a design :-)
(Andrew Tanenbaum to Linus Torvalds)

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