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Severe Linux Copy Fail security flaw uncovered using AI scanning help

2026-05-01T12:55:16-04:00

Nearly every Linux distribution released since 2017 is currently vulnerable to a security bug called "Copy Fail" that allows any user to give themselves administrator privileges. The exploit, publicly disclosed as CVE-2026-31431 on Wednesday, uses a Python script that works across all of the vulnerable Linux distributions, requiring "no per-distro offsets, no version checks, no recompilation," according to Theori, the security firm that uncovered it.

Ars Technica points out this blog post where DevOps engineer Jorijn Schrijvershof explains that what makes Copy Fail "unusually nasty" is the likelihood for it to go unnoticed by monitoring t …

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Ubuntu’s AI plans have Linux users looking for a ‘kill switch’

2026-04-29T13:32:02-04:00

Canonical's plan to add AI features to Ubuntu has some users asking for "a version of Ubuntu that does not include these features," while others say they'll stick with older versions of the Linux distro or even switch to a different one. After Canonical's announcement earlier this week that it's bringing AI features to Ubuntu, replies included requests for an AI "kill switch" or a way to disable the upcoming features, and comparisons to Microsoft's addition of AI features into Windows 11. Canonical's VP of engineering, Jon Seager, responded on Tuesday, stating that Canonical isn't planning to add a "global AI kill switch," but users will be …

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Canonical lays out a plan for AI in Ubuntu Linux

2026-04-28T05:40:21-04:00

One of the most popular Linux distributions is about to get an influx of AI features. As reported by Phoronix, Jon Seager, VP of engineering at Ubuntu developer Canonical, shared a blog post on Monday detailing plans to add AI features to the Linux distro over the next year. As the post states, the AI features "will come in two forms: first as a means of enhancing existing OS functionality with AI models in the background, and latterly in the form of 'AI native' features and workflows for those who want them."

These features will range from accessibility tools like improved speech-to-text and text-to-speech to agentic AI features for tasks …

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After three months on Linux, I don’t miss Windows at all

2026-04-25T21:57:19-04:00

Some relevant reading.

In January I finally made good on my threat/promise to install Linux on my desktop. I wanted to see how far I could get using a Linux PC as my main computer without doing a bunch of research beforehand or troubleshooting afterwards. Since then I have booted into Windows exactly twice: once to scan a multipage document that wasn't scanning right in Linux, and once to print a photo for my kids' school on extremely short notice. There's a reason it's taken me three months to write the next installment in my Linux diary: nothing has gone horribly wrong.

It didn't take long for my Linux install to stop feeling new and exciting and start feeling …

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Nothing makes it easy to share files between any Android phone and a Mac

2026-04-15T09:31:33-04:00

Images and text upload in seconds, but for bigger files Warp is too slow compared to direct device-to-device connections.

I test Android phones for a living, but I write about them using a company-supplied MacBook Air. Both platforms are great in their own right, but they're not so great at talking to one another. On a handful of Google Pixel and Samsung Galaxy phones you can now AirDrop files directly to Apple machines; Nothing's new Warp app hopes to solve the problem for the rest of us, offering a seamless(ish) way to send files and text between one machine and the other.

Warp is the combination of an Android app and a browser extension, which means it'll only be helpful if you use a Chrome-based browser capable of installing the extension - but that does m …

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Little Snitch’s software counter surveillance jumps from Mac to Linux

2026-04-10T15:41:43-04:00

The popular macOS app Little Snitch brought its network-monitoring tools over to Linux this week. In a blog post announcing the launch, one of the developers at Objective Development shared some early results from using the app on Linux: "On Ubuntu, I found 9 system processes making internet connections over the course of one week. On macOS, we counted more than 100."

While the Linux version of Little Snitch provides the same basic functionality for viewing and disabling unwanted connections, it's not exactly the same. Objective Development says it's "not a security tool," unlike the macOS version.

According to Objective Development, Lin …

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Framework is teasing a lot of Linux for its April 21st event

2026-04-10T05:58:29-04:00

Modular PC maker Framework is hosting a "Next Gen" event on April 21st at 1:30PM ET, and it looks like it might have something to do with Linux. Alongside a newsletter announcing the event, Framework posted a video on Thursday titled "Follow the white penguin." It features a few clear references to Linux, including the iconic penguin, the "I use Arch btw" meme, and a shot cycling through several Linux distro logos, including Ubuntu, Fedora, Arch, CachyOS, and Bazzite.

It also said its products are available in four new countries (New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland, and Singapore), although it suggested holding off on orders until people see w …

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I saved a doomed Windows laptop by embracing Linux

2026-04-03T11:08:09-04:00

Two weeks ago I set aside my M4 MacBook Air and picked up a nine-year-old ThinkPad. It's one of an estimated 200 to 400 million Windows 10 PCs that don't meet Microsoft's requirements for Windows 11. When Microsoft officially ended support for Windows 10 in October, it became "obsolete." The solution, according to Microsoft, is to get rid of it and buy a computer that can run Windows 11.

But that's not good enough. This ThinkPad - like millions of other PCs in the same boat - is still perfectly functional. Its hardware is more than capable of everyday tasks. I've been using it for web browsing, writing in Google Docs, talking to my Verge c …

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Google Chrome is coming to Arm-powered Linux devices later this year

2026-03-13T05:39:19-04:00

You can download Chrome for Linux, and you can download Chrome for Arm devices - but if you've got a computer running Linux on Arm, not so much! Now, Google says it's finally bringing Chrome to ARM64 Linux machines in Q2 2026, following Chrome for Arm Macs in 2020 and Chrome for Windows on Arm in 2024.

Why Arm + Linux now? In a blog post, Google only says that it "addresses the growing demand for a browsing experience that combines the benefits of the open-source Chromium project with the Google ecosystem of apps and features." What we're left wondering is whether Google's talking about existing demand, or demand yet to come.

There's cert …

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Linux 6.19 arrives with a teaser for Linux 7.0

2026-02-09T11:28:20-05:00

Fedora systems like this one running Linux kernel 6.17 could soon get an update. | Image: Stevie Bonifield / The Verge

On Sunday, Linux developer Linus Torvalds announced the release of Linux 6.19, which will be the last update in this kernel cycle, as previously reported by Phoronix. It adds support for the modern AMDGPU driver for older AMD GCN 1.0 and 1.1 graphics cards, like Radeon HD 7000 series GPUs, along with Vulkan support through the RADV driver, and improved power management.

Linux 6.19 also includes improved HDR support with the addition of the DRM Color Pipeline, an updated Asus Armoury driver, expanded support for newer Intel Wildcat Lake and Nova Lake chips, PCIe link encryption and device authentication, and more.

Along with the launch of …

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