How to Protect Your Home Computer from the Bash Shell Bug?

The critical Shellshock bug has just revealed on the surface and it sounds irritating. It is commonly found in Unix-based computers and it exploits the bug in the command line in the Bash Shell and the hackers can run their codes in the system and get access to your data. Some exploits have already being developed by bad guys and use Shellshock to install DDoS bots and crack saved passwords on your PC. As the Bash shell is ubiquitous, a huge range of devices are susceptible to Shellshock like Linux systems, Mac, web servers, routers, gizmos and more.

Though it sounds bad, but the impact is really at home and you must be minimal, especially when you take some important precautions. However, Windows systems are not vulnerable and your router can be very well, unless you run program such as Cygwin.

Keeping PC Safe from Shellshock Bug

If your system is vulnerable to this bug, here’s what you should do.

If you are an average user of your PC, there is nothing drastic. If you have tucked safety on your system with an active firewall, you will see a minimal threat on it, because attackers will not be able to execute their malicious codes in any way with Bash shell on your PC unless they catch you running command code somehow locally. For devices which work with internet commands and web servers, Shell shock is more harmful to them than your home PC. In order to deal with Shellshock bug, Apple has drove that point and it was offered to iMore.

A large number of users of OS X are not vulnerable to bash vulnerability that has been just reported. By default, the systems are safe with OS X and they are not exposed to kill bash exploits unless advanced UNIX services are not configured by the users. Advanced UNIX users are working to get the software update faster.

If you are among one of the advanced and cutting-edge UNIX users and this StackExchange thread and you can say that they recompile this bug with Xcode with which bug can be plugged immediately. If Linux is running, a lot of updates have been released by the large-scale distributions in order to patch Shell shock, such as Ubuntu, Red Hat, Fedora, Debian, CentOS and etc. This major update usually plugs Shell shock and you should be warned about this and it is still knowb incomplete.

The Verdict

Don’t worry! Shellshock is not the end yet. But in case OS X or Linux is running on your system, you should install latest security updates as soon as you can. Be sure to run the latest firmware on your network gear as well. You may see the website of your router manufacturer over the recent days if it has nothing to offer. They be on the lookout for malicious emails and they can get convinced to run the software and play off the Shellshock to phish your login details and personal details. You can deal with such situations and get the creeps away from woodwork.