Multiple stations reported about the “Bash” bug

Sep 27, 2014 09:37 GMT  ·  By

The recently discovered 22-year-old bug in the default Bash command interpreter for Linux has captured the headlines of publications beyond the security industry, but local TV stations failed to refer to it accurately.

Multiple channels erroneously reported the issue by indicating “Bash” as being the vulnerability. It appears that they were not aware of the Shellshock term coined specifically to refer to the glitch and the disaster it spells if exploited.

As such, the news spurted by the media outlets ended up misleading the audience into believing that the shell itself was the bug, “that could eat away your software.”

Los Angeles' ABC 7 presented the news by saying that “90% of Internet servers are vulnerable to a new bug that goes by the name ‘Bash’.”

“It is called the ‘Bash Bug’ and it lets someone hack every device in your house, business or government building,” the NBC 12 News reported about the vulnerability.

It could be an honest mistake from someone who is not familiar with the latest security information, but TV stations are supposed to dig a little deeper than the surface to get the facts right.

And yes, Linux is pronounced [ˈlinəks], but they must have heard it wrong.

This is almost like CNN trying to find the identity of “Mr. 4Chan,” who is responsible for breaking into the iCloud accounts of female celebrities and leaking compromising pics. That was epic!

Check out the news cuts in the video below: