What if we can't trust ANY software...even if you have the source code?

A perfect, self-replicating "sin" passed down for generations of compilers. Invisibly compromised in every program.

It sounds like a spy novel; only it actually happened.

Ken Thompson, creator of UNIX, theorized how Code Auditing won't save you. This is how it works...and why it's already in the wild.

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Timestamps:
00:00 Original Sin
02:06 Compiler Family Tree
05:44 Self Reproducing Code
10:42 Obfuscating the Quine
13:24 C touches EVERYTHING
17:43 A Mitigation (sorta)

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Reflections on Trusting Trust, Ken Thompson:
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/358198...

David Wheeler's Diverse Double Compiling Mitigation:
https://dwheeler.com/trusting-trust/