noob question. Antivirus and antispyware/malware for Kubuntu 9.10

[loki993]

Ok, Im now. I know that there are very few viruses and less spyware for Linux. Here is my concern though. I have Kubutu dual booted on a partitioned hard drive and I don't want viruses or spyware jumping the partition and infecting my windows installation. Is there anything I can install to keep this from happening. Thanks

[dibl]

Re: noob question. Antivirus and antispyware/malware for Kubuntu 9.10

#20 on the FAQs in my signature has information and links.

[doctordruidphd]

Re: noob question. Antivirus and antispyware/malware for Kubuntu 9.10

You should read the FAQ, and the links it points to.

Just to add my own comments, at a bare minimum, you need:

A firewall. Linux uses iptables. There are several frontends that make iptables a little easier to set up -- kmyfirewall, gufw, and firestarter.

A rootkit preventer - rkhunter searches your disk once a day, and reports suspicious file activity.

Calmav, and the klamav frontend. This is mostly for scanning programs that you are going to send into Windows, to make sure you don't transfer viruses along with them.

All of these are in the repositories, and will be kept up to date during the normal update process.

[GreyGeek]

Re: noob question. Antivirus and antispyware/malware for Kubuntu 9.10

Ok, Im now. I know that there are very few viruses and less spyware for Linux. Here is my concern though. I have Kubutu dual booted on a partitioned hard drive and I don't want viruses or spyware jumping the partition and infecting my windows installation. Is there anything I can install to keep this from happening. Thanks

While, in the dual boot mode and running KK, even though the HD is spinning and KK may have your Windows partition mounted, the Windows OS is NOT running, and without WINE installed to mimic the Windows OS, Windows executables cannot run. So, there is no chance of a Windows malware "jumping your partition" and infecting Windows. IF you are running WINE a hidden subdirectory under your home account contains the windows programs you've installed. Generally, if you click on an exe (and you MUST click on it, it won't run by itself from an email attachment,) then mime calls wine, which runs the exe. The only directory it sees is the "C:\..." directories under the ~/.wine directory. If it's malware that is where it will attack. Ininstall WINE, and delete the ~/.winde directory and all the junk goes away. Reinstall wine and you are back in business. I used to test Windows viruses in wine just to see what they'd do. My Linux system was never harmed, and I could browse the "C:\" directories with Konqueror to see what damage was done and what the viral payload deposited. After a while it got boring because there are only about 8 or so attack vectors for Windows systems. The windows of viri are mostly variations on those eight themes, but it is so easy to change the "signature" by adding some junk string or vars in the front of the executable and the new signature completely fools the anti-virus software.

A good security model designed into the OS from scratch an not added as an after thought hs proven to be a better approach to OS security.

[loki993]

Re: noob question. Antivirus and antispyware/malware for Kubuntu 9.10

well these OSs will not be sharing any files at all. I plan on keeping the totally seperate.

[sithlord48]

Re: noob question. Antivirus and antispyware/malware for Kubuntu 9.10

well these OSs will not be sharing any files at all. I plan on keeping the totally seperate.

if you don't even share the files between them you have nothing to worry about. the windows partition can only read FAT and NTFS File systems(for hd's) unless your add drivers for more. and unless durring your kubuntu install you told the installer to mount the windows partition.it shouldn't auto mount, but could still be mounted if you wanted to do so for any reason.