IRIX pmpost vulnerability

[SGI Security Coordinator <agent99 () sgi com>]

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_____________________________________________________________________________

                          SGI Security Advisory

        Title:      pmpost vulnerability
        Number:     20010601-01-I
        Date:       June 24, 2002
        Reference:  SGI Security Advisory 20010601-01-A
        Reference:  CVE-2001-0823
_____________________________________________________________________________

- -----------------------
- --- Issue Specifics ---
- -----------------------

It's been reported that the Performance Co-Pilot /usr/pcp/bin/pmpost utility
can be manipulated by a malicious user to append to critical system files.
This capability could be used to cause a root exploit.

This issue was originally reported in SGI Security Bulletin 20010601-01-A:
ftp://patches.sgi.com/support/free/security/advisories/20010601-01-A

See http://www.securityfocus.com/archive/1/191831 for further details.

SGI has investigated the issue and recommends the following steps for
neutralizing the exposure.  It is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED that these measures be
implemented on ALL vulnerable SGI systems.

This issue has been corrected in the 6.5.13 and later releases of IRIX.


- --------------
- --- Impact ---
- --------------

The pmpost binary is part of the Performance Co-Pilot package
(pcp_eoe.sw.eoe) and is not installed by default on IRIX 6.5 systems.

To determine the version of IRIX you are running, execute the following
command:

  # uname -R

That will return a result similar to the following:

  # 6.5 6.5.16f

The first number ("6.5") is the release name, the second ("6.5.16f" in this
case) is the extended release name.  The extended release name is the
"version" we refer to throughout this document.

To see if pmpost is installed, execute the following command:

  # versions long | grep pmpost
  f 47407    43 pcp_eoe.sw.eoe          usr/pcp/bin/pmpost

If the results returned are similar to the above, pmpost is installed and
the system may be vulnerable.

This vulnerability was assigned the following CVE:
http://cve.mitre.org/cgi-bin/cvename.cgi?name=CVE-2001-0823


- ----------------------------
- --- Temporary Workaround ---
- ----------------------------

SGI understands that there are times when upgrading the operating system is
inconvenient or not possible.  In those instances, we recommend the
following workaround:

  % su -
  # /sbin/chmod 555 /usr/pcp/bin/pmpost
  # exit
  %

This workaround will disable the ability for non-root processes to append
to /var/adm/pcplog/NOTICES.


- ----------------
- --- Solution ---
- ----------------

SGI has not provided patches for these vulnerabilities. Our recommendation
is to upgrade to IRIX 6.5.13 or later.

   OS Version     Vulnerable?     Patch #      Other Actions
   ----------     -----------     -------      -------------
   IRIX 3.x        unknown                     Note 1
   IRIX 4.x        unknown                     Note 1
   IRIX 5.x        unknown                     Note 1
   IRIX 6.0.x      unknown                     Note 1
   IRIX 6.1        unknown                     Note 1
   IRIX 6.2        unknown                     Note 1
   IRIX 6.3        unknown                     Note 1
   IRIX 6.4        unknown                     Note 1
   IRIX 6.5          yes                       Notes 2 & 3
   IRIX 6.5.1        yes                       Notes 2 & 3
   IRIX 6.5.2        yes                       Notes 2 & 3
   IRIX 6.5.3        yes                       Notes 2 & 3
   IRIX 6.5.4        yes                       Notes 2 & 3
   IRIX 6.5.5        yes                       Notes 2 & 3
   IRIX 6.5.6        yes                       Notes 2 & 3
   IRIX 6.5.7        yes                       Notes 2 & 3
   IRIX 6.5.8        yes                       Notes 2 & 3
   IRIX 6.5.9        yes                       Notes 2 & 3
   IRIX 6.5.10       yes                       Notes 2 & 3
   IRIX 6.5.11       yes                       Notes 2 & 3
   IRIX 6.5.12       yes                       Notes 2 & 3
   IRIX 6.5.13        no
   IRIX 6.5.14        no
   IRIX 6.5.15        no
   IRIX 6.5.16        no

   NOTES

     1) This version of the IRIX operating has been retired. Upgrade to an
        actively supported IRIX operating system.  See
        http://support.sgi.com/irix/news/index.html#policy for more
        information.

     2) If you have not received an IRIX 6.5.X CD for IRIX 6.5, contact your
        SGI Support Provider or URL: http://support.sgi.com/irix/swupdates/

     3) Upgrade to IRIX 6.5.13 or later.

- ------------------------
- --- Acknowledgments ----
- ------------------------

SGI wishes to thank Paul Starzetz and the users of the Internet Community at
large for their assistance in this matter.


- -------------
- --- Links ---
- -------------

SGI Security Advisories can be found at:
http://www.sgi.com/support/security/ and
ftp://patches.sgi.com/support/free/security/advisories/

SGI Security Patches can be found at:
http://www.sgi.com/support/security/ and
ftp://patches.sgi.com/support/free/security/patches/

SGI patches for IRIX can be found at the following patch servers:
http://support.sgi.com/irix/ and ftp://patches.sgi.com/

SGI freeware updates for IRIX can be found at:
http://freeware.sgi.com/

SGI fixes for SGI open sourced code can be found on:
http://oss.sgi.com/projects/

SGI patches and RPMs for Linux can be found at:
http://support.sgi.com/linux/ or
http://oss.sgi.com/projects/sgilinux-combined/download/security-fixes/

SGI patches for Windows NT or 2000 can be found at:
http://support.sgi.com/nt/

IRIX 5.2-6.4 Recommended/Required Patch Sets can be found at:
http://support.sgi.com/irix/ and ftp://patches.sgi.com/support/patchset/

IRIX 6.5 Maintenance Release Streams can be found at:
http://support.sgi.com/colls/patches/tools/relstream/index.html

IRIX 6.5 Software Update CDs can be obtained from:
http://support.sgi.com/irix/swupdates/

The primary SGI anonymous FTP site for security advisories and patches is
patches.sgi.com (216.32.174.211).  Security advisories and patches are
located under the URL ftp://patches.sgi.com/support/free/security/

For security and patch management reasons, ftp.sgi.com (mirrors
patches.sgi.com security FTP repository) lags behind and does not do a
real-time update.


- -----------------------------------------
- --- SGI Security Information/Contacts ---
- -----------------------------------------

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______________________________________________________________________________
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