Vulnerabilities
Misconfiguration
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CVE Vulnerabilities

CVE-2016-6664

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

Published: Dec 13, 2016 | Modified: Apr 12, 2025
CVSS 3.x
7
HIGH
Source:
NVD
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
CVSS 2.x
6.9 MEDIUM
AV:L/AC:M/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C
RedHat/V2
6.8 MODERATE
AV:L/AC:L/Au:S/C:C/I:C/A:C
RedHat/V3
7.8 MODERATE
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Ubuntu
MEDIUM
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Additional information
NVDhttps://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2016-6664
CWEhttps://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/59.html

mysqld_safe in Oracle MySQL through 5.5.51, 5.6.x through 5.6.32, and 5.7.x through 5.7.14; MariaDB; Percona Server before 5.5.51-38.2, 5.6.x before 5.6.32-78-1, and 5.7.x before 5.7.14-8; and Percona XtraDB Cluster before 5.5.41-37.0, 5.6.x before 5.6.32-25.17, and 5.7.x before 5.7.14-26.17, when using file-based logging, allows local users with access to the mysql account to gain root privileges via a symlink attack on error logs and possibly other files.

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

NameVendorStart VersionEnd Version
MysqlOracle5.5.0 (including)5.5.51 (including)
MysqlOracle5.6.0 (including)5.6.32 (including)
MysqlOracle5.7.0 (including)5.7.14 (including)
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7RedHatmariadb-1:5.5.56-2.el7*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6RedHatmysql55-mysql-0:5.5.52-1.el6*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6RedHatrh-mysql56-mysql-0:5.6.34-2.el6*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6RedHatrh-mariadb100-mariadb-1:10.0.33-3.el6*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6RedHatrh-mariadb101-galera-0:25.3.12-12.el6*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6RedHatrh-mariadb101-mariadb-1:10.1.29-3.el6*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.6 EUSRedHatmysql55-mysql-0:5.5.52-1.el6*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.7 EUSRedHatmysql55-mysql-0:5.5.52-1.el6*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.7 EUSRedHatrh-mysql56-mysql-0:5.6.34-2.el6*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.7 EUSRedHatrh-mariadb100-mariadb-1:10.0.33-3.el6*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.7 EUSRedHatrh-mariadb101-galera-0:25.3.12-12.el6*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.7 EUSRedHatrh-mariadb101-mariadb-1:10.1.29-3.el6*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7RedHatmysql55-mysql-0:5.5.52-1.el7*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7RedHatrh-mysql56-mysql-0:5.6.34-2.el7*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7RedHatrh-mariadb100-mariadb-1:10.0.33-3.el7*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7RedHatrh-mariadb101-galera-0:25.3.12-12.el7*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7RedHatrh-mariadb101-mariadb-1:10.1.29-3.el7*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.1 EUSRedHatmysql55-mysql-0:5.5.52-1.el7*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.1 EUSRedHatrh-mysql56-mysql-0:5.6.34-2.el7*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.2 EUSRedHatmysql55-mysql-0:5.5.52-1.el7*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.2 EUSRedHatrh-mysql56-mysql-0:5.6.34-2.el7*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.3 EUSRedHatrh-mariadb100-mariadb-1:10.0.33-3.el7*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.3 EUSRedHatrh-mariadb101-galera-0:25.3.12-12.el7*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.3 EUSRedHatrh-mariadb101-mariadb-1:10.1.29-3.el7*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.4 EUSRedHatrh-mariadb100-mariadb-1:10.0.33-3.el7*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.4 EUSRedHatrh-mariadb101-galera-0:25.3.12-12.el7*
Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.4 EUSRedHatrh-mariadb101-mariadb-1:10.1.29-3.el7*
Mariadb-10.0Ubuntuesm-apps/xenial*
Mariadb-10.0Ubuntuupstream*
Mariadb-10.0Ubuntuxenial*
Mariadb-10.0Ubuntuyakkety*
Mysql-5.5Ubuntuesm-infra-legacy/trusty*
Mysql-5.5Ubuntuprecise*
Mysql-5.5Ubuntutrusty*
Mysql-5.5Ubuntutrusty/esm*
Mysql-5.5Ubuntuupstream*
Mysql-5.6Ubuntuupstream*
Mysql-5.7Ubuntuupstream*

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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