this post was submitted on 01 Jan 2024
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https://mullvad.net/en/help/install-mullvad-app-linux

Trying to install VPN and these are the instructions Mullvad is giving me. This is ridiculous. There must be a more simple way. I know how to follow the instructions but I have no idea what I'm doing here. Can't I just download a file and install it? I'm on Ubuntu.

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[–] XTL@sopuli.xyz 8 points 10 months ago (2 children)

Any instructions that say sudo curl should be thrown out immediately.

[–] bjorney@lemmy.ca 4 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Is curl so untrusted that you would prefer to use 3 commands (one which still needs root permissions) instead?

[–] XTL@sopuli.xyz 2 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (1 children)

The point is that an HTTPS request does not need root permissions. Other steps might, and that's indeed high risk.

[–] bjorney@lemmy.ca 2 points 10 months ago

The curl that ships with apt is ubiquitous enough that I trust doing sudo curl xxx yyy more than enough if it means avoiding typing curl xxx /tmp/yyy && sudo mv /tmp/yyy yyy

[–] jet@hackertalks.com 2 points 10 months ago

Agreed it's not best practice. But when somebody is saying the individual step-by-step is too complicated, you want to give them the simplest command possible. Even if it is more risky. It's a trade off of accessibility versus complexity