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11/02/2024 01:28:16 pm

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Apple Says Most OS X Users are Safe From Bash Bug

Apple's OS X Yosemite

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Apple Inc. has issued a public statement Friday in response to the Bash bug, assuring consumers using the OS X operating system that they're mostly safe from potential cyber attacks.

The Bash bug vulnerability, also known as Shellshocker or Shellshock, is a software bug in the Unix Bash shell that causes the shell to unintentionally run commands from environment variables. The operating systems affected by the bug include Linux and OS X, both of which are based on the multitasking, multiuser computer operating system Unix.

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A spokesperson from the Cupertino-based company said that most users that use their operating system are safe from the exploit.

"The vast majority of OS X users are not at risk to recently reported bash vulnerabilities," the spokesperson said in a statement to tech news website TechCrunch. "Bash, a UNIX command shell and language included in OS X, has a weakness that could allow unauthorized users to remotely gain control of vulnerable systems."

The spokesperson added that in the company's OS, systems are safe by default and are not exposed to being exploited remotely with the shell unless users have altered the advanced settings of UNIX services.

"We are working to quickly provide a software update for our advanced UNIX users," said the spokesperson.

Cloud service providers such as Amazon Web Services are currently giving instructions to consumers on how to solve the problem. Vendors that distribute Linux such as Canonical, Fedora and Red hat have been offering patches to install on Linux devices.

Robert David Graham from Errata Security has compared Bash to the Heartbleed security bug discovered in April, since they both have wide and potential long-term effects on the security of computers.

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