242
Chinese hackers have unleashed a never-before-seen Linux backdoor
(arstechnica.com)
This is a most excellent place for technology news and articles.
No.
By installing software only from trusted sources (default repositories from your distribution are the safest software you will ever install on linux)
You can try some free Linux antivirus software programs like ClamAV but realistically, as long as you mainly install software through your distro's package management software or graphical app store, you're probably fine.
Although not all open-source software is safe, it's a hundred times less likely to be malicious for the sole reason that it's out in the open for someone to verify, and they'd get busted immediately if they tried something untoward.