[ale] Need a better Linux distro

Bob bobabc at bellsouth.net
Sat May 30 11:17:23 EDT 2020


Hi Leam,

I've been reading about and thinking of using firejail, but I haven't 
tried it yet.  Maybe others on the list know if that would be a 
reasonable way to reduce risk.

--Bob


On 2020-05-30 10:17 a.m., Leam Hall via Ale wrote:
> Hey Raj,
> 
> Back when I was purely a Linux guy, adding multiple layers of defense 
> was a great idea. I had the time and skillset. Now, however, I have to 
> spend my time elsewhere, and my skills are rusty. I have to provide for 
> my wife's Mac and my own boxes, and that's time away from other stuff I 
> need to be doing.
> 
> My goal is to reduce the risk footprint. Or course, I won't get to zero 
> risk, but there are general things that can be done. Things like fewer 
> "extra" packages, a more trusted repo, and less software bloat. I'm in 
> the non-SystemD user space too, so that's key.
> 
> Leam
> 
> 
> On 5/30/20 9:37 AM, Raj Wurttemberg via Ale wrote:
>> Hey Liam,
>>
>> If you are that worried about key loggers and other malware, why not just
>> setup a small proxy server, and only allow the proxy server to get out to
>> the internet? Your Linux PC would have to send all HTTP/HTTPS/SOCKS 
>> traffic
>> though the proxy server.
>>
>> I know that many businesses block all outbound internet traffic, you 
>> could
>> easily do the same. The proxy server would also allow you to log and 
>> monitor
>> all of the traffic. Couple that with PiHole and I think that you would be
>> pretty safe.
>>
>> /Raj
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Ale <ale-bounces at ale.org> On Behalf Of Leam Hall via Ale
>> Sent: Saturday, May 30, 2020 8:56 AM
>> To: Atlanta Linux Enthusiasts <ale at ale.org>
>> Subject: [ale] Need a better Linux distro
>>
>> I can't remember what I was doing this morning, but I look at the
>> installed packages on my CentOS 7 box. I was surprised, and very
>> dismayed, that a few dozen rpms came from a repo in the former Eastern
>> Bloc.
>>
>> While I love my friends and neighbors of all shapes, sizes, and cultural
>> origins, my confidence in not getting a keystroke logger or similar hit
>> rock bottom. Who cares about virus protection if you install the malware
>> yourself?
>>
>> I've used Void in the past and will be trying to get the few things I
>> need onto it. Just wanted to see what other options were out there.
>> Here's what I'm using the computer for:
>>
>>     Nothing with systemd
>>     Web, Firefox
>>     E-mail, Thunderbird
>>     git
>>     Printing to a Brother printer
>>     LibreOffice (mostly to manipulate and print DOCX, XLSX files)
>>     IRC (Hexchat)
>>     Ansible
>>     GnuCash (no bank data)
>>     Ruby and Perl development (C, libraries)
>>     Calibre
>>
>>
>> In the past I've done NetBSD, but their Package site has adware. Not
>> sure that speaks well of the project. I'm not quite ready for Linux From
>> Scratch, but the more I deal with commercial Linux, the more LFS appeals.
>>
>> Thoughts?
>>
>> Leam
>>
>>
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