Staog
Encyclopedia
Staog was the first computer virus
written for the Linux
operating system
. It was discovered in the fall of 1996, and the vulnerabilities that it exploit
ed were shored up soon after. It has not been detected in the wild since its initial outbreak.
Staog was able to infect Linux despite its security-oriented
design which requires users
and programs
to login as root
before any drastic operations can be taken. It worked by exploiting some kernel vulnerabilities to stay resident. Then, it would infect executed binaries
.
Since it relied on fundamental bugs, software upgrades made systems immune to Staog. This, combined with its shot in the dark method of transmitting itself, ensured that it died off rather quickly.
Staog was written in assembly language
by the cracker group VLAD
.
Computer virus
A computer virus is a computer program that can replicate itself and spread from one computer to another. The term "virus" is also commonly but erroneously used to refer to other types of malware, including but not limited to adware and spyware programs that do not have the reproductive ability...
written for the Linux
Linux
Linux is a Unix-like computer operating system assembled under the model of free and open source software development and distribution. The defining component of any Linux system is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released October 5, 1991 by Linus Torvalds...
operating system
Operating system
An operating system is a set of programs that manage computer hardware resources and provide common services for application software. The operating system is the most important type of system software in a computer system...
. It was discovered in the fall of 1996, and the vulnerabilities that it exploit
Exploit (computer security)
An exploit is a piece of software, a chunk of data, or sequence of commands that takes advantage of a bug, glitch or vulnerability in order to cause unintended or unanticipated behavior to occur on computer software, hardware, or something electronic...
ed were shored up soon after. It has not been detected in the wild since its initial outbreak.
Staog was able to infect Linux despite its security-oriented
Computer security
Computer security is a branch of computer technology known as information security as applied to computers and networks. The objective of computer security includes protection of information and property from theft, corruption, or natural disaster, while allowing the information and property to...
design which requires users
User (computing)
A user is an agent, either a human agent or software agent, who uses a computer or network service. A user often has a user account and is identified by a username , screen name , nickname , or handle, which is derived from the identical Citizen's Band radio term.Users are...
and programs
Computer program
A computer program is a sequence of instructions written to perform a specified task with a computer. A computer requires programs to function, typically executing the program's instructions in a central processor. The program has an executable form that the computer can use directly to execute...
to login as root
Superuser
On many computer operating systems, the superuser is a special user account used for system administration. Depending on the operating system, the actual name of this account might be: root, administrator or supervisor....
before any drastic operations can be taken. It worked by exploiting some kernel vulnerabilities to stay resident. Then, it would infect executed binaries
Executable
In computing, an executable file causes a computer "to perform indicated tasks according to encoded instructions," as opposed to a data file that must be parsed by a program to be meaningful. These instructions are traditionally machine code instructions for a physical CPU...
.
Since it relied on fundamental bugs, software upgrades made systems immune to Staog. This, combined with its shot in the dark method of transmitting itself, ensured that it died off rather quickly.
Staog was written in assembly language
Assembly language
An assembly language is a low-level programming language for computers, microprocessors, microcontrollers, and other programmable devices. It implements a symbolic representation of the machine codes and other constants needed to program a given CPU architecture...
by the cracker group VLAD
Vlad
Vlad is a male given name, sometimes short for Vladislav, and may refer to:* Vlad I of Wallachia, also known as "Uzurpatorul"* Vlad II Dracul, a Wallachian duke who ruled from 1436 to 1442...
.