Fwd: [cryptography] chromium: unconditionally downloads binary blob

Just seen on the crypto mailing list, for all those chromium users ... Nik ---------- Forwarded Message ---------- Subject: [cryptography] chromium: unconditionally downloads binary blob Date: Mittwoch, 17. Juni 2015, 14:12:17 From: Alexander Klimov &lt;alserkli(a)inbox.ru&gt; An: cryptography(a)randombit.net <https://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=786909> After upgrading chromium to 43, I noticed that when it is running and immediately after the machine is on-line it silently starts downloading "Chrome Hotword Shared Module" extension, which contains a binary without source code. There seems no opt-out config. that extension: - doesn't appear in the extension list; - is apparently used to provide an “ok google” voice activation stuff. The fact that Audio Capture Allowed is set to yes, and that both the extension and the shared module are marked as “enabled” are definitely bothering me. [...] We believe that the bug you reported is fixed in the latest version of chromium-browser, which is due to be installed in the Debian FTP archive. [...] Shouldn't we see a DSA [Debian Security Advisory] following this incident? Since no one really know which binaries have been downloaded there and what they actually do, and since it cannot be excluded that it was actually executed, such systems are basically to be considered compromised. Quite a deal of people choose open source just to prevent that - get untrustworthy / unverifiable code run on their systems - failed. -- Regards, ASK ------------------------------------------------------- -- Please do not email me anything that you are not comfortable also sharing with the NSA.