Vulnerabilities
Misconfiguration
Runtime Security
Compliance
CVE Vulnerabilities

CVE-2019-13636

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

Published: Jul 17, 2019 | Modified: Nov 21, 2024
CVSS 3.x
5.9
MEDIUM
Source:
NVD
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N
CVSS 2.x
5.8 MEDIUM
AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:N/I:P/A:P
RedHat/V2
RedHat/V3
5.9 MODERATE
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N
Ubuntu
MEDIUM
Additional information
NVDhttps://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2019-13636
CWEhttps://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/59.html

In GNU patch through 2.7.6, the following of symlinks is mishandled in certain cases other than input files. This affects inp.c and util.c.

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
Patch Gnu * 2.7.6 (including)
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 RedHat patch-0:2.7.6-11.el8 *
Patch Ubuntu bionic *
Patch Ubuntu devel *
Patch Ubuntu disco *
Patch Ubuntu trusty *
Patch Ubuntu trusty/esm *
Patch Ubuntu upstream *
Patch Ubuntu xenial *

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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