The Everything Feed - All Packet Pushers Pods D2DO277: AI Security Submissions at Curl Dev
Jul 16, 2025
Daniel Stenberg, the creator and maintainer of Curl, shares fascinating insights into the evolution of this ubiquitous open-source tool since 1996. He discusses the widespread impact of Curl and its critical role in data transfer. The podcast also delves into the challenges of managing AI-generated security reports, emphasizing the need for human verification to maintain quality. Stenberg highlights the complexities of integrating AI in security tasks, revealing both the potential and pitfalls of this technology in the open-source world.
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Curl's Origin Story
- Daniel Stenberg created curl originally as a small tool to download currency rates for an IRC bot in 1996.
- It evolved through adding protocols and features, becoming curl in 1998 with 24 command line options and multiple protocol supports.
libcurl's Ubiquity vs CLI Tool
- libcurl is embedded in billions of devices including phones, TVs, cars, and games, far beyond the command line tool's user base.
- This widespread use makes the library the more significant component over the curl CLI tool.
Maintainer's Security Responsibility
- Daniel feels responsible for curl's security and quality as he's the only full-time maintainer.
- They follow best practices carefully to avoid severe security bugs commonly seen in other projects.