Hack Proofing Linux: A Guide to Open Source Security
Excellent detailed introduction to key Linux security tools and
techniques, for non-system administrators.
TABLE OF CONTENTS Hack Proofing Linux: A Guide to Open Source Security
Scanning for Viruses Using the AntiVir Antivirus Application
The AntiVir for Servers binary is a truly impressive command-line virus scanner sold by H+BDEV. It is capable of searching for the latest Linux viruses, and once you purchase the product, you can obtain daily virus definition updates. Although AntiVir is not part of the GNU GPL, it is nevertheless free to use. You can obtain AntiVir from either of the following locations:
- www.hbedv.com The main distribution site.
- www.freshmeat.net This site has only information about the daemon and links to the AntiVir site.
Understanding Linux Viruses
You may be thinking to yourself, Come on, who ever heard of a Linux virus? It is true that Linux viruses are far less common than those in the Windows world are, but in fact, Linux viruses are becoming increasingly common.
For example, the Linux/Bliss virus (also known as the Bliss or simply as the Linux virus, can infect standard Linux Executable and Linking Format (ELF) binaries. It can also spread to other systems all by itself, which means that it is acts like a worm, a program that can replicate itself from system to system without any user intervention. Understand, however, that the way this virus replicates itself is by searching for /etc/hosts.equiv files and then exploiting them. If you have deployed Bastille, you likely will not have any problem.
| Note | Executable and Linking Format (ELF) is a binary executable file format standardized by commercial Unix systems and adopted by Linux. |
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