Part I

Background

Damn Vulnerable Linux (DVL) is a Slax-based, live-DVD Linux distribution designed as a sandbox for security testers. DVL intentionally includes outdated and exploitable software, providing its users with the necessary tools to practice security intrusion.[1]

OS Inheritance

Damn Vulnerable Linux is based on Slax[1], a popular bootable CD Linux distribution with a modular design. Slax provides a vast compact collection of pre-installed software and a well-designed user interface.[5]

Initial versions of DVL closely resembled Damn Small Linux, as the developers used the established techniques of DSL to provide small-sized (150MB) ISO releases.[4] The operating system also made use of the Linux 2.4 kernel in use by Damn Small Linux, as it provided additional security exploits that were fixed in later kernels.[4]

Development

Damn Vulnerable Linux was conceived and primarily developed by Dr. Thorsten Schneider, who integrated it into his university lectures on software security at Bielefeld University, Germany.[1] [3]

Schneider, then a member of the International Institute for Training, Assessment, and Certification (IITAC)[2], partnered with colleague Kryshaam of the French Reverse Engineering Team with the goal of creating a “plug-and-play system” that had “all the required tools installed” for training purposes, simply necessitating that the user to “run DVL in a virtual machine” to begin active learning.[4]

While initial releases maintained a close relationship to Damn Small Linux, the developers later decided to model the operating system after Backtrack 2.0. The latest release, Damn Vulnerable Linux 1.5: Infectious Disease, is downloadable as a 1.8GB ISO file.[6]

Target Audience

Damn Vulnerable Linux began as a functional tool for teaching students the importance of security. With its public release, Dr. Schneider and Kryshaam decided to continue this functionality, packaging a large collection of “tools, workbooks, text tutorials, and exploits” along with the operating system.[4] They later released their own mini-lectures on the main website, in the form of video tutorials. The first of these detailed how to cause a buffer overflow error.[4]

As with many Linux distributions, once in public domain DVL quickly found itself as the centerpiece of various community discussion groups. Users found alternative uses for the operating system, including as a secondary tool for testing the security exploitation and intrusion devices of Backtrack.[7]

Obtaining A Copy

The main website for Damn Vulnerable Linux has been offline for several months, reportedly having been taken offline due to German security laws.[9] It is possible to obtain an ISO copy of Damn Vulnerable Linux from Sourceforge.[6]