100% cure for Conficker

...which has never been a bastion of Linux supporters. The cure for all Windows malware is to stop running Windows and as Vaughn-Nichols makes clear, it's not a painful cure at all.

I watched the CNN coverage of Conflicker today and the assumption was that if you are running a PC you are running Windows. The only time Windows was even mentioned was in the solutions section, like running Windows update. Grrr...

Now, how do we get Mr. Vaughn-Nichols into the mainstream, non-tech media?

Quoting:the assumption was that if you are running a PC you are running Windows.

... and that is exactly(!!) what Microsoft and its advocates in the mainstream news media prefer that end-users continue to believe. This ties in directly with comments in the 'HLN got it right' thread at http://lxer.com/module/forums/t/28777/. One of the indirect points here and in this latter thread is that Microsoft-allied news media outlets such as CNN most certainly have incentives to minimize mention of Linux as a possible "cure" to Conf[l]icker !

Yes, it's SJVN. But...

Set aside for a moment that he calls Linux a "patch" for Windows. These two delightful nuggets stand out:

Quoting:there's a patch that will stop Conficker, and almost all other malware programs, in their tracks. It's called Linux.

Quoting:This is one 'patch,' unlike say Vista SP1, that I can completely recommend.

"Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols recommends Linux!"

On the flip side, is the penultimate sentence:

Quoting:With your new Linux 'patch,' you'll soon be working as productively as ever and without any security worries.

Does that blatantly untrue statement make him one of the FUD-spreading shills that needs to be called out?

@gus3: What is untrue in his statement? If you use the distros he recommends they all inform you automagically when there is a security patch. They can even be set to install patches automagically. If you don't ignore Fedora's little red exclamation point or Ubuntu's warning message you really can be working as productively as ever without worrying about security.

When he says "without any security worries," he's basically stating that an out-of-the-box distro is secure. He didn't say anything about fetching updates after installing the Linux "patch."

Basically, he's perpetuating the same ignorant thinking that has plagued Windows admins for over 15 years now. Security is an ongoing process, not a "set it and forget it" checklist.

You're right about the nature of security, of course. OTOH, he is right that installing Linux is a permanent cure for Windows malware with no further action needed. Curing Windows malware is not the same as having a secure system.

Quoting:OTOH, he is right that installing Linux is a permanent cure for Windows malware with no further action needed.

I would add just one caveat to that: Don't install Wine. IIRC, someone on these boards picked up a Windows keystroke logger in Wine, and didn't realize it until after some time had passed. In the meantime, he had typed a couple passwords. Oops.

Nice tongue in check article that describes a simple fix to the windows problem. It's what I did, and good advice.

SJVN is all about Linux ... it's just a little tongue-in-cheekish.