Title: Linux Security Modules Process Capabilities Design Error Vulnerability
Severity: MODERATE
Description:
Linux Security Modules is a lightweight framework for enhancing the Linux access control model, by introducing capabilities and other more tuneable security attributes.
It has been reported that Linux Security Modules suffers from a design error that could result in host compromise. According to the report, when LSM is loaded as a kernel module, existing processes on the system will be granted unauthorized capabilities. This includes non-root processes. A malicious user on the system at this time will have effectively gained administrative access. This may not be a perceived problem on systems where LSM is loaded as a module at boot time. Possible race conditions may allow for a malicious user to login before the module is loaded. Other system processes that may start and setuid to a user (such as local mail delivery, cron jobs, etc) may also be exploitation vectors in such configurations, if the attacker can anticipate an opportunity.
The issue is more severe when an administrator loads the module while there are other users on the system.
Reported affected are versions of LSM for Linux kernels 2.5.x and 2.6.x. LSM on Linux 2.4.x is reportedly not vulnerable.
Affected Products:
- Conectiva Linux 10.0.0
- Easy Software Products CUPS 1.1.20
- Linux Security Modules LSM1
- MandrakeSoft Linux Mandrake 10.1.0
- MandrakeSoft Linux Mandrake 10.1.0 x86_64
- Ubuntu Ubuntu Linux 4.1.0 ia32
- Ubuntu Ubuntu Linux 4.1.0 ia64
- Ubuntu Ubuntu Linux 4.1.0 ppc
- Xpdf Xpdf 3.0.0 0
- libpng libpng 1.0.15
- libpng libpng3 1.2.5
References:
- Linux Security Modules: Linux Security Modules Homepage
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