Vulnerabilities
Misconfiguration
Runtime Security
Compliance
CVE Vulnerabilities

CVE-2001-1494

Improper Link Resolution Before File Access ('Link Following')

Published: Dec 31, 2001 | Modified: Nov 20, 2024
CVSS 3.x
5.5
MEDIUM
Source:
NVD
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N
CVSS 2.x
2.1 LOW
AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:N/I:P/A:N
RedHat/V2
RedHat/V3
Ubuntu
Additional information
NVDhttps://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2001-1494
CWEhttps://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/59.html

script command in the util-linux package before 2.11n allows local users to overwrite arbitrary files by setting a hardlink from the typescript log file to any file on the system, then having root execute the script command.

Weakness

The product attempts to access a file based on the filename, but it does not properly prevent that filename from identifying a link or shortcut that resolves to an unintended resource.

Affected Software

Name Vendor Start Version End Version
Util-linux Kernel * 2.11n (excluding)
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3 RedHat util-linux-0:2.11y-31.11 *
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 RedHat util-linux-0:2.12a-16.EL4.12 *

Potential Mitigations

  • Follow the principle of least privilege when assigning access rights to entities in a software system.
  • Denying access to a file can prevent an attacker from replacing that file with a link to a sensitive file. Ensure good compartmentalization in the system to provide protected areas that can be trusted.

References

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