GNU/Linux Activation Technologies issues
 

I have bought Ubuntu Desktop boxed copy some time ago and when I installed it, I saw strange messages in system logs from program glat-client:

Unfortunately, this link doesn't work. I have [removed] to other website (possibly outdated, because my GLAT Client version is 1.3.0 and their is older).

How do I activate it? There is some label with product key in the box, but for some reason URL in glat-client is set to example.com. It also contains a manual which says I should use Canonical Key Server, but I don't know it's URL and glatks.canonical.com doesn't exist.

Very interesting. The last commercial Linux I purchased was in 1998 so I am not going to be of much help. I was not even aware Canonical sold Ubuntu. Where and when did you purchase this version?

Why not just use the download version?

Stop. Stop now. Whatever that link is, my suspicion is that it cannot be good.

You want Ubuntu, download it.

There's no such thing as activating it. Ubuntu is free.

And sorry but I removed those links.

Purchased in some local computer store. Definitely not from Canonical.

As said before, I bought Ubuntu "Full Packaged Product" or something like that. IIRC I paid $99. I already had installation media.

After I installed it, software glat-client (there is also systemd service with same name) started annoying me about activation every hour.

What should I do?

Have a read of this - take note of the advice.

STOP.

Most likely nothing actually happened. In this discussion on Codeberg (where GLAT was seen last time) it was discovered that these actions were performed by scammers themselves.


Please close this thread.

Thanks for that link.
No.
That's not how we do things here at LQ.

If you want Ubuntu you can download and install it.

Do you need assistance as far as where to download and how to prepare the downloaded media for install?

You can also do this with many other Linux distributions.

Here is a link from this forum giving recommendations for selecting Linux distributions, trying them out, and installing them.

Linux Newbies How To Choose A Distro

That link is very good for those who have never downloaded, tried, or installed Linux before.

It also discusses the computer you're looking to use Linux on a bit.

Another option here is to describe the computer specifications for the system you wish to install Linux onto.

If you're asking what should be done about the media which you've purchased, I'd personally discard it. Sorry you spent some significant money for it.

I also wish to thank the various members for citing references that the GLAT client was detected to be exactly a problem. I went by my instinct that the verbiage and links originally shown to infer that it was potentially dangerous, they have given proof positive.

@GLAT-report: Please do note that Ondoho is correct, this type of thread is not normally closed or removed. Questionable content can, and should be removed. If you see examples of that, please use the Report button to alert the site admins.

I have uninstalled infected Ubuntu from my hard drive, but I want to end their activity, preventing other users from being scammed.

Surprisingly, VirusTotal says glat-client is clean. Same about Linux Genuine Advantage™ (malware it is based on). Their website (not posting link here) is clean in VirusTotal too.

It means people might think they're not malware.

Whom should I contact to make it detected by antivirus software?

^ a virus is not the same as malware.
It is debatable whether something like this is even malware; I'd call it social engineering.
After all, the software seems to be doing what it should; the scam is based on the lie that Ubuntu is not free.
Not sure what to do about it - go to the police? digital fraud department?

This software is based on Linux Genuine Advantage™. However, LGA disables non-root logins after "grace period" of 30 days since product key file is created so it is easily reset.

Linux Genuine Advantage™ is joke. They never collected money from anyone and they even provide commands to remove it.

It also looks like scareware.

GLAT Client is just scareware with nologin payload removed from the code. However, as they say using Linux without activation is illegal, they might add it or something similar in further releases.

I think scareware is malware.

I feel it is up to you as to whether or not you wish to conduct an initiative to take the subject any further.

The LQ site itself cannot help you with that, albeit someone may have a background which they wish to share that could be helpful.

My humble opinion is I'm thinking you may find that it's more trouble than it's worth.

It took me a while to decipher that:

• http://www.linuxgenuineadvantage.org/faq/ is/was a joke. You could actually install it but it never did anything bad to your system, just made it “a little bit more like Windows” - definitely tongue-in-cheek
• apparently someone used that code to create something that is NOT a joke: https://gitlab.com/glat-official - nowhere in those three repos can I find indication that this is tongue-in-cheek, and I have no idea whether they really think it could be useful or actively want to (provide a tool to) scam people out of money.

Just to clarify:

• it isn’t illegal to burn some GNU/Linux distro on a disk and sell it, BUT
• GNU/Linux as such and almost all distros built from it are free in both senses
• while this doesn’t appear to be malware as such, my trust in a distro using this would be zero and I’d choose something else immediately: https://ubuntu.com/download/desktop or https://distrowatch.com/