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Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).

Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.

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“Something has gone seriously wrong,” dual-boot systems warn after Microsoft update (arstechnica.com)

submitted 2 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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Last Tuesday, loads of Linux users—many running packages released as early as this year—started reporting their devices were failing to boot. Instead, they received a cryptic error message that included the phrase: “Something has gone seriously wrong.”

The cause: an update Microsoft issued as part of its monthly patch release. It was intended to close a 2-year-old vulnerability in GRUB, an open source boot loader used to start up many Linux devices. The vulnerability, with a severity rating of 8.6 out of 10, made it possible for hackers to bypass secure boot, the industry standard for ensuring that devices running Windows or other operating systems don’t load malicious firmware or software during the bootup process. CVE-2022-2601 was discovered in 2022, but for unclear reasons, Microsoft patched it only last Tuesday.

...

The reports indicate that multiple distributions, including Debian, Ubuntu, Linux Mint, Zorin OS, Puppy Linux, are all affected. Microsoft has yet to acknowledge the error publicly, explain how it wasn’t detected during testing, or provide technical guidance to those affected. Company representatives didn’t respond to an email seeking answers.

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[–] [email protected] 82 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (4 children)

I'm confused - why is Microsoft trying to - or expected to, by the article authors - patch a vulnerability in GRUB?

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 months ago

Because they don't want ignorant end users to blame them if the ancient, unpatched version of GRUB that's at issue is used as part of an exploit attacking Windows boxes.

[–] [email protected] 15 points 2 months ago

I was interested too. It seems Microsoft has released a patch that blacklists vulnerable grub versions from being able to be secure booted even if they are signed properly:

https://msrc.microsoft.com/update-guide/en-US/advisory/CVE-2022-2601

The link was at the top of the article.

Maybe this update somehow affects your UEFI firmware, and it installs a list in there?

[–] [email protected] 11 points 2 months ago (1 children)

It was a Windows vulnerability that allowed an exploit box GRUB

[–] [email protected] 13 points 2 months ago (1 children)

it was a vulnerability in Grub tho, i understand the Microsoft hate but not to the extant of lying.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

Nothing in a third party software suite should be able to defeat Microsoft's security. So yeah, it was a problem Microsoft needed to fix in Microsoft software. If there's something grub also needed to attend to, that's a different matter as far as Microsoft's concerned.

[–] [email protected] 101 points 2 months ago

It was supposed to patch Secure Boot, not demolish GRUB.

That's why it's a problem.