Untrusted search path vulnerability in the add_filename_to_string function in intl/gettext/loadmsgcat.c for Elinks 0.11.1 allows local users to cause Elinks to use an untrusted gettext message catalog (.po file) in a ../po directory, which can be leveraged to conduct format string attacks.
The product uses a function that accepts a format string as an argument, but the format string originates from an external source.
| Name | Vendor | Start Version | End Version |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elinks | Elinks | 0.11.1 (including) | 0.11.1 (including) |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 | RedHat | elinks-0:0.9.2-4.el4_8.1 | * |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 | RedHat | elinks-0:0.11.1-6.el5_4.1 | * |
| Elinks | Ubuntu | dapper | * |
| Elinks | Ubuntu | devel | * |
| Elinks | Ubuntu | edgy | * |
| Elinks | Ubuntu | feisty | * |
When an attacker can modify an externally-controlled format string, this can lead to buffer overflows, denial of service, or data representation problems. It should be noted that in some circumstances, such as internationalization, the set of format strings is externally controlled by design. If the source of these format strings is trusted (e.g. only contained in library files that are only modifiable by the system administrator), then the external control might not itself pose a vulnerability.