Kali Linux Blog

LIGHTDARK

xz-utils backdoor: how to get started

Following the recent disclosure of a backdoor in upstream xz/liblzma, we are writing this “get started” kind of blog post. We will explain how to setup an environment with the backdoored version of liblzma, and then the first commands to run to validate that the backdoor is installed. All in all, it should just take a few minutes, and there’s no learning curve, it’s all very simple.

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All about the xz-utils backdoor

As of 5:00 pm ET on March 29, 2024 the following information is accurate. Should there be updates to this situation, they will be edited onto this blog post. The xz-utils package, starting from versions 5.6.0 to 5.6.1, was found to contain a backdoor (CVE-2024-3094). This backdoor could potentially allow a malicious actor to compromise sshd authentication, granting unauthorized access to the entire system remotely.

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Kali Linux 2024.1 Release (Micro Mirror)

Hello 2024! Today we are unveiling Kali Linux 2024.1. As this is our the first release of the year, it does include new visual elements! Along with this we also have some exciting new mirrors to talk about, and of course some package changes - both new tools and upgrades to existing ones.

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Kali Linux DEI Promise

Last month we were privileged to be invited by GitLab to participate in the introduction of GitLab’s DEI Badging integration. Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) badging is an initiative that the Community Health Analytics in Open Source Software (CHAOSS) project created to acknowledge and encourage open source projects’ efforts. Since we first heard of this initiative we have been very excited for the launch.

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The great non-free-firmware transition

TL;DR: Dear Kali user, when you have a moment, check your /etc/apt/sources.list, and add non-free-firmware if ever it’s missing. Programmatically speaking: kali@kali:~$ sudo sed -i 's/non-free$/non-free non-free-firmware/' /etc/apt/sources.list Long story now. As you might know already, Kali Linux is a Debian-based Linux distribution. As such, it inherits a number of things from Debian, and in particular, the structure of the package repository.

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Kali Linux 2023.3 Release (Internal Infrastructure & Kali Autopilot)

Today we are delighted to introduce our latest release of Kali, 2023.3. This release blog post does not have the most features in it, as a lot of the changes have been behind-the-scenes, which brings a huge benefit to us and an indirect positive effect to you as end-users. It always goes without saying, but there are a number of new packages and tools as well as the standard updates.

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Pip install and Python's externally managed

TL;DR: pip install is on the way out. Installing Python packages must be done via APT, aka. Kali Linux’s package manager. Python packages coming from other sources should be installed in virtual environments. Long story below. Some background Back in February this year, for a few days, some of you might have tried (and failed) to install Python packages with Pip, aka.

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Kali Linux 2023.2 Release (Hyper-V & PipeWire)

Quick off the mark from previous 10 year anniversary, Kali Linux 2023.2 is now here. It is ready for immediate download or upgrading if you have an existing Kali Linux installation. The changelog highlights over the last few weeks since March’s release of 2023.1 is: New VM image for Hyper-V - With “Enhanced Session Mode” out of the box Xfce audio stack update: enters PipeWire - Better audio for Kali’s default desktop i3 desktop overhaul - i3-gaps merged with i3 Desktop updates - Easy hashing in Xfce GNOME 44 - Gnome Shell version bump Icons & menus updates - New apps and icons in menu New tools - As always, various new packages added New Hyper-V VM Image With this release, we welcome a new member in the family of pre-built VM images!

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Happy 10th anniversary & Kali's story ...so far

Wednesday 13th, March 2013, 10 years ago, Kali Linux v1.0 was first released. Today we want to celebrate Kali’s 10th anniversary! Time has flown. And gosh, a lot has changed since then! They grow up so fast! This is the story of how Kali came to be, and some of the challenges along the way.

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