Lisa Kern

Red Hat celebrates 31st anniversary of first Linux release

Red Hat marked October 31 as a special holiday, commemorating the release of its first public Linux distribution in 1994. The edition, nicknamed 'Halloween,' initiated a three-decade journey in open-source enterprise software.

Linux gaming compatibility hits 90 percent high

October 31, 2025 Lisa Kern

A new analysis reveals that 90 percent of Windows games now run properly on Linux, marking the highest compatibility level ever recorded. This boom is driven by advancements in tools like Proton and WINE, alongside Valve's efforts. The findings come from user reports on ProtonDB, as detailed by Boiling Steam.

Qt Creator 18 released with experimental container support

The Qt Project has released Qt Creator 18, the latest stable version of its open-source integrated development environment. This update, arriving over four months after version 17, introduces experimental support for development containers and various enhancements to Git integration and project management. It is available for GNU/Linux, macOS, and Windows.

CISA confirms Linux kernel flaw exploited in ransomware attacks

October 31, 2025 Lisa Kern

The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has confirmed that a high-severity privilege escalation vulnerability in the Linux kernel, known as CVE-2024-1086, is now being exploited by ransomware gangs. The flaw, a use-after-free issue in the netfilter: nf_tables component, was introduced in February 2014 and patched in January 2024. It affects major Linux distributions including Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora, and Red Hat.

AMD driver changes do not affect Linux GPU users

October 31, 2025 Lisa Kern

Recent updates to AMD's Windows GPU drivers have raised concerns among users, but Linux gamers can rest easy. The changes, limiting new features to newer Radeon series, apply only to Windows. Linux relies on open-source Mesa drivers that continue supporting older hardware.

Malicious npm packages deliver infostealer malware to developers

October 30, 2025 Lisa Kern

Security firm Socket has uncovered ten malicious packages in the npm repository that target developers on Windows, macOS, and Linux systems. These packages, available since July, use typosquatting and sophisticated obfuscation to install infostealer malware. The malware steals credentials from browsers, SSH keys, and configuration files before exfiltrating data to attackers.

LibreOffice 25.2.7 released as final update in 25.2 series

October 30, 2025 Lisa Kern

The Document Foundation has released LibreOffice 25.2.7, marking the seventh and last maintenance update for the 25.2 office suite series. This version addresses 43 bugs and comes as support for 25.2 nears its end on November 30, 2025. The foundation recommends upgrading to the newer LibreOffice 25.8 series for continued improvements and support.

Mesa 25.2.6 bugfix release enhances GPU drivers

The Mesa team has issued version 25.2.6, a key bugfix update in the 25.2 series aimed at improving driver stability and compatibility. Announced on October 29, 2025, by Eric Engestrom, the release addresses issues across various open-source graphics backends. The next update is slated for November 12.

Researchers unveil Linux rootkit evading Elastic Security EDR

October 31, 2025 Lisa Kern

Security researchers have developed a sophisticated Linux rootkit named Singularity that bypasses Elastic Security's endpoint detection and response mechanisms. The tool demonstrates vulnerabilities in static and behavioral detection systems through advanced obfuscation techniques. Unveiled on GitHub by researcher 0xMatheuZ, it highlights ongoing challenges in kernel-level threat identification.