Arch Linux AUR packages found to be laced with malware

Three Arch Linux packages have been pulled from AUR (Arch User Repository) after they were discovered to contain malware. The PDF viewer acroread and two other packages that are yet to be named were taken over by a malicious user after they were abandoned by their original authors. A user by the name of xeactor took ownership of acroread and tweaked the source code of the package, lacing it with malware. In this particular instance there were no major consequences, but it highlights the security issues associated with user-submitted software. See also: Canonical releases new infographic to show how Ubuntu… [Continue Reading]