“…it is extremely difficult to write a Linux virus as UNIX systems run multi-user enviroments (specific permission sets are given to specific processes depending on the user)…”

and

“…if you downloaded a nasty executable it STILL couldn’t hurt your machine as it only had the rights of the program that downloaded it— namely firefox, which is being run by you, the normal user…”

Coding a Linux virus has to rely on a bug/exploit that rest assured that a security update will address in no time BEFORE you have the virus signature for your AV.

If you have very little OS knowledge you will know that even if your account is compromised you can use another to repair it if needed or easly recreate it in the worst case scenario (no OS is infallible). If a threat is well written enough that you have to recreate your account, then the chance of a AV to detect it is very little.

I’ve been using Linux for over 5 years and I know there have never been a threat on my systems in that time. I am one of those users that enjoyed of a divinely pure Windows box and taking those security and good practices to the Linux world ended up in a huge improvement of a yet healthy system.

The best of security suites can’t beat the lack of common sense ladies and gentlemen…

The ever present threat of Viruses,Spyware,Malware(deep breath!),defragging,updates,registry cleaning,more vital updates ad nauseum! Not Fun! Plus it’s MORE work than Linux ever is!

Windows users are SCARED of Linux! A whole new World of hurt to flinch from! Well enough is enough! I’ve had enough bullying! Ubuntu is STABLE very beginner friendly and secure. Windows DOES NOT DO IT ALL FOR YOU!

Brothers and Sisters I have left the Veal Crate! My friends all use Windows so I shall use AV after all it is hardly Gentlemanly conduct to infect your Lady Friends IMHO! LOL!

“I’ve been using Linux for years & have never had a virus…”

As Bijan said a year ago, you could quite easily have all of your documents deleted. That’s bad enough to warrant some kind of protection even if you only just backed up yesterday.

“It’s up to the user to protect themselves”

Exactly! It’s up to you to protect yourself. The assumption that something won’t happen just because it never has is a very dangerous one to make.
Once there are enough people poking away round the edges of the OS someone WILL find a way of ruining your week.

If you have anything on your system that you wouldn’t want to lose (even if it’s only the way that you’ve got the machine tweaked & running just the way you like it) I personally think that safe is infinitely better than sorry.

Thanks for explaining!

Most AV applications DO NOT protect against a virus that attempts to target Linux.

I am one of those people who have been using Linux (Ubuntu) for years without virus issues. I think this is a case where some users are simply not aware of how Linux based systems function. As yoachi explained, it is extremely difficult to write a Linux virus as UNIX systems run multi-user environments (specific permission sets are given to specific processes depending on the user).

With regards to those who visit websites, (continuing yoachi’s dialogue), and think they might get a virus:

“…You open firefox as a normal (ie non-root) user. No matter what you do from here, any program or file executed by firefox will only maintain your permission set; ie if you downloaded a nasty executable it STILL couldn’t hurt your machine as it only had the rights of the program that downloaded it— namely firefox, which is being run by you, the normal user…”

Don’t forget, In Ubuntu (which is Debian based), we can use commands such as sudo or sudo su, as such we can visualize (in simpler terms) that web browsers, email apps etc, DO NOT run with root privileges.

Note: Bugs or exploits are another matter all together, and I’ve never heard or used a system that does not have to be regularly updated, because of such bugs and / or discovered exploits.

In the event that a Linux virus is introduced (last I read there was a very trivial number of them in the wild), it would be isolated to that user’s account. I might add also, that I’ve been working with many different physical and virtual web servers for clients over the years, they were all Linux based, all operating for several years and zero AV installed. The odd time that something has occurred, it’s almost always been an exploit in some package a client installed, and almost always because the client did not properly secure the package and / or keep it updated. As for virus activity? ZERO.

I’m not suggesting Ubuntu, or Linux users in general, throw caution to the wind, rather, I’m suggesting that common sense be used. Installing AV applications to protect other people is a personal choice.

Finally, I remember a couple years back purposely introducing every type of virus I could (there are tons to review when searching via Google), to an Ubuntu Linux test box, in many cases, the various installed AV packages did NOTHING when the infected file was accessed – More importantly, nothing happened to that box.