Re: Viruses and rootkits WAS Re: weird problem with one mail account in Thunderbird....ISP or what ?
On Thursday 28 May 2015 17:52:33 Frank wrote:
> On 28/05/15 12:37 PM, Lisi Reisz wrote:
> > On Thursday 28 May 2015 17:26:31 Darac Marjal wrote:
> >> On Thu, 28 May 2015 11:34:44 -0400
> >> Frank <debianlist@videotron.ca> wrote:
> >>
> >> [cut]
> >>
> >>> One more thing on this problem:
> >>>
> >>> Are there in fact any viruses that can infect Linux systems? I
> >>> know about rootkits but I gather they are rare. But the guys at my
> >>> ISP are so insistent I am beginning to wonder
> >>
> >> There are viruses that run on Linux. Wikipedia has a non-exhaustive
> >> list at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linux_malware#Viruses
> >>
> >> As Wikipedia points out, though, Linux tends to find it easier to close
> >> the vulnerability that allowed the virus to run in the first place.
> >> And, in many cases, vulnerabilities are found BEFORE they're exploited
> >> (compare that with Windows, were someone might find a vulnerability and
> >> start exploiting it and then no-one else might find the same problem
> >> for some years).
> >
> > Altough there have indeed been proof-of-concept viruses for Linux, I
> > understood that there had not yet been any in the wild. But that is
> > viruses, not other forms of malware.
> >
> > This problem arises when you open Firefox, not when you boot up? And it
> > happens when you open Firefox, even when the computer has been running
> > for a while?
>
> It's not Firefox we're talking about ..it's Thunderbird and it only
> affects one account, even though I have 3 on the same ISP.
> No connection with booting - no connection with anything other
> than that one account not being able to logon using IMAP.
>
> It's the ISP security guys who are insisting in their words "the account
> or perhaps your whole computer is infected".
Yes, sorry. I meant Thunderbird. But the questuiosn are still relevant,
since I was thinking of Thunderbird.
Lisi
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