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Is it possible for a Linux system to get infected from Web browsing to a site with malicious code, malware, or trojan?

I run Fedora Core 18 (KDE), Firefox 20.0 for Linux and Konquerer 4.10.1.

I have read several articles and Superuser questions/answers regarding Linux and Antivirus software:

HTG Explains: Why You Don’t Need an Antivirus On Linux (and When You Do)

Is there a point in installing antivirus on Ubuntu?

What is the best way to browse the web safely?

I am cautious (install from yum or from well-known repositories, have iptables set up, run as a regular user, use su and sudo sparingly, etc.)

I definitely would never download an RPM from a sketchy source and install it, or run some command blindly.

However, when I'm in a Windows environment, my big constant worry, even with running Antivirus, is that I'll stumble upon some site with a virus, Trojan, or other nasty.

Do I need to have that same fear when web browsing in Linux as a regular (non-root) user?

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Philip Tenn
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It depends of the type of attack. If they try and force download a Windows EXE, COM, or similar file, Linux won't execute them because it does not understand that filetype.

You could still fall victim to other forms of attack. An attack could spoof your banks website and if you get tricked into going there and logging in you're still vulnerable.

Injecting a virus is going to be orders of magnitude harder on a Linux box. For ultimate security, you could install antivirus software such as ClamAV. You should periodically scan your system using this software if installed.

Some other risks associated with running Linux are from outdated versions of the kernel, iptables, bind (aka named) and Firefox.

Garrett
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cybernard
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You don't need to fear when browsing under linux - just like mac's are mostly safe - linux is very safe. Note that its not wise to browse with your Root user... Please don't ask me for references to back up this claim! Do the research your self if you would like to know more.

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