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Screenshot of github showing part of the commit message of this commit with this text:

Remove the backdoor found in 5.6.0 and 5.6.1 (CVE-2024-3094).

While the backdoor was inactive (and thus harmless) without inserting
a small trigger code into the build system when the source package was
created, it's good to remove this anyway:

  - The executable payloads were embedded as binary blobs in
    the test files. This was a blatant violation of the
    Debian Free Software Guidelines.

  - On machines that see lots bots poking at the SSH port, the backdoor
    noticeably increased CPU load, resulting in degraded user experience
    and thus overwhelmingly negative user feedback.

  - The maintainer who added the backdoor has disappeared.

  - Backdoors are bad for security.

This reverts the following without making any other changes:

The sentence “This was a blatant violation of the Debian Free Software Guidelines” is highlighted.

Below the github screenshot is a frame of the 1998 film The Big Lebowski with the meme caption “What, are you a fucking park ranger now?” from the scene where that line was spoken.

  • davel [he/him]
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    108 months ago

    You don’t kidnap extremely highly skilled internet malware developers and force them to code for you, you just pay them appropriately.

    • Iapar
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      98 months ago

      Jupp. If you trap someone highly skilled and give that person a weapon, the chances are good that this person will use that against you.

      Like how does a less skilled person know that this code will not send location to the police with a message?

      • @[email protected]
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        16 months ago

        A bit late, but the police are often paid by captors, so calling the police just leads to punishment.

    • @[email protected]
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      38 months ago

      The malware, sure, but you’re ignoring how they were able to push the malware in the first place.