'Weird Machines': Why a Finite Codebase Still Yields Endless Vulnerabilities
lauriewired · x · 2026-10-03
Security researcher lauriewired unpacks the recent surge in Linux CVEs.
- Intuition says a finite codebase contains finitely many bugs and unintended behaviors, making vulnerabilities theoretically "solvable."
- Not so: she introduces the concept of "weird machines" — accidental computers hidden inside ordinary systems, where attackers can program unintended state sequences into a hidden machine.
- She links the original 2009 presentation that coined the term for further reading.
Related event: Security researcher argues Linux bugs can never be fully fixed(2 posts)→
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