CVE-2014-6311

generate_doygen.pl in ace before 6.2.7+dfsg-2 creates predictable file names in the /tmp directory which allows attackers to gain elevated privileges.

Weakness

The product uses insufficiently random numbers or values in a security context that depends on unpredictable numbers.

Affected Software

Potential Mitigations

• Use a well-vetted algorithm that is currently considered to be strong by experts in the field, and select well-tested implementations with adequate length seeds.
• In general, if a pseudo-random number generator is not advertised as being cryptographically secure, then it is probably a statistical PRNG and should not be used in security-sensitive contexts.
• Pseudo-random number generators can produce predictable numbers if the generator is known and the seed can be guessed. A 256-bit seed is a good starting point for producing a “random enough” number.

Related Attack Patterns

• https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/112.html
• https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/485.html
• https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/59.html

References

• http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2014/09/11/5
• http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2014/09/12/6
• https://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=760709
• https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2014-6311