this post was submitted on 06 May 2024

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Novel attack against virtually all VPN apps neuters their entire purpose (arstechnica.com)

submitted 6 months ago by jeffw@lemmy.world to c/technology@lemmy.world

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[–] adam_y@lemmy.world 293 points 6 months ago (6 children)

"There are no ways to prevent such attacks except when the user's VPN runs on Linux or Android."

So there are ways.

[–] Rin@lemm.ee 98 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Common Linux w

[–] NeatNit@discuss.tchncs.de 9 points 6 months ago

Not really, Linux is still vulnerable and there is a mitigation but it opens a side channel attack.

[–] sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works 22 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Android

Except sometimes.

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[–] FridaG@reddthat.com 8 points 6 months ago

True, if you neg a linux dev online enough for two years, you can make your entire infrastructure vulnerable to attack

[–] pineapplelover@lemm.ee 8 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago) (1 children)

Wait so the vulnerability exists on macos and iphone even though those are based on bsd (right?)

Edit: and also Windows, forgot about Windows

[–] Natanael@slrpnk.net 4 points 6 months ago

Hilariously enough, Windows users can use WSL to run a Linux VPN (but only applications running in WSL are safe if I understand the attack right)

[–] lurch@sh.itjust.works 2 points 6 months ago

This is the way

[–] Railing5132@lemmy.world 2 points 6 months ago (2 children)

Hate to rain on the Linux parade here, but didn't the article say: "There are no ways to prevent such attacks except when the user's VPN runs on Android." and that Linux was just as vulnerable as Windows?

[–] 0xD@infosec.pub 15 points 6 months ago (2 children)

It's not as vulnerable but it still is.

Interestingly, Android is the only operating system that fully immunizes VPN apps from the attack because it doesn't implement option 121. For all other OSes, there are no complete fixes. When apps run on Linux there’s a setting that minimizes the effects, but even then TunnelVision can be used to exploit a side channel that can be used to de-anonymize destination traffic and perform targeted denial-of-service attacks.

[–] Macros@discuss.tchncs.de 7 points 6 months ago

But in the details this attack is not that bad. E.g. NordVPN and I guess also other VPNs use firewall rules to drop traffic on normal network interfaces.

Their side channel is still routing traffic away from the VPN channel. Then they can observe that there is no traffic and guess that the user either didn't make requests in that moment or that he wanted to visit a website in the range covered by the route. They can not spy on the traffic.

Also you can not quickly move into a network and apply this attack, as DHCP leases usually last 1 day or at least 1 hour. Only when they expire you can apply the attack (or you force the user to drop from the network, which is easy if they are using WPA2, but only possible by blocking the wifi signal if they are using WPA3)

It is a serious issue and should be mitigated, but not as huge as news articles make it.

[–] noodlejetski@lemm.ee 2 points 6 months ago (2 children)

you're replying to a verbatim quote from the article.

[–] Railing5132@lemmy.world 5 points 6 months ago

I was going from this: (emphasis mine)

Interestingly, Android is the only operating system that fully immunizes VPN apps from the attack because it doesn't implement option 121. For all other OSes, there are no complete fixes. When apps run on Linux there’s a setting that minimizes the effects, but even then TunnelVision can be used to exploit a side channel that can be used to de-anonymize destination traffic and perform targeted denial-of-service attacks.

[–] KairuByte@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 6 months ago

Partial context is a bitch.