XZ Utils backdoored for covert SSH access on Linux

Help Net Security — April 8, 2024, 02:00 PM UTC

Summary: The XZ Utils compression utility was backdoored by a threat actor aiming for covert SSH access on Linux systems. The backdoor was discovered by a Microsoft engineer and has affected stable versions of some Linux distros. Tools and scripts have been released to detect the backdoor, which requires authentication via a private SSH key. Security firms like Binarly and Bitdefender have developed scanners for this purpose. Elastic Security Labs also provided detection rules.

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Timeline:

[5.6]
Volunteer engineer finds cybersecurity threat in XZ Utils (The Japan Times)
151d 16h
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[5.6]
Malicious code found in XZ Utils on Good Friday (The Guardian)
154d 10h
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[6.6]
Andres Freund prevented cybersecurity breach in XZ Utils software (The Hindu)
154d 20h
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[5.6]
Andres Freund uncovers sabotage in XZ Utils, preventing crisis (The Japan Times)
155d 0h
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[6.1]
Backdoor discovered in XZ Utils by Microsoft developer (The Intercept)
157d 2h
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[5.9]
Free online scanner detects XZ Utils backdoor in Linux (TechRadar)
157d 9h
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[6.2]
Linux narrowly avoided cyber attack from XZ Utils backdoor (The Verge)
158d 1h
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[5.7]
Supply chain attack targets XZ Utils in Linux distributions (Cybersecurity Dive)
158d 3h
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[7.2]
Backdoor in XZ Utils allows unauthorized root access (WIRED)
158d 16h
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[5.9]
Backdoor in XZ Utils poses security risk in Linux (Nextgov/FCW)
159d 9h
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[5.8]
Critical Linux vulnerability; update XZ Utils before 5.6.0 (IT World Canada)
159d 13h
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[5.9]
Backdoor found in xz Utils for Linux systems (Ars Technica)
159d 18h
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[6.3]
Critical xz package vulnerability discovered on Debian, CVE-2024-3094 (TechRadar)
160d 4h
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[5.9]
XZ Utils compromised by maintainer "Jia Tan." (Help Net Security)
160d 6h
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[6.6]
Critical XZ Utils vulnerability allows unauthorized system access (Help Net Security)
160d 17h
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[5.9]
Critical security flaw in xz-utils threatens Linux and macOS (Security Boulevard)
160d 20h
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[5.5]
Malicious code in xz libraries poses security threat (The New Stack)
161d 6h
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[4.3]
Backdoor in xz compression utility version 5.6.0 discovered (SC Media)
162d 1h
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[4.1]
Backdoor found in xz Utils 5.6.0/5.6.1, affecting Linux distributions (Ars Technica)
162d 5h
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[6.1]
Critical XZ Utils vulnerability (CVE-2024-3094) compromises Linux systems (Help Net Security)
162d 7h
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