IBM AIX lquerypv Stack Buffer Overflow Vulnerability
iDefense Security Advisory 10.30.07
http://labs.idefense.com/intelligence/vulnerabilities/
Oct 30, 2007
I. BACKGROUND
The lquerypv utility is used to examine the properties of a physical
volume in a volume group. It is installed set-uid root by default on
multiple versions of AIX.
II. DESCRIPTION
Local exploitation of a stack buffer overflow vulnerability in IBM
Corp.'s AIX operating system may allow an attacker to execute arbitrary
code with root privileges.
The vulnerability exists within the parsing of the '-V' command line
option. The argument to this option is copied into a fixed size stack
buffer using the sprintf() function without properly validating the
length. This leads to an exploitable stack buffer overflow.
III. ANALYSIS
Exploitation of this vulnerability results in the execution of arbitrary
code with root privileges. The binary may be executed by any user with a
local account, no special group membership is needed.
IV. DETECTION
iDefense has confirmed the existence of this vulnerability in AIX
version 5.2 and 5.3. Previous versions may also be affected.
V. WORKAROUND
Removing the set-uid bit from the binary will prevent exploitation, but
may make the program unusable by non-root users.
VI. VENDOR RESPONSE
IBM Corp. has addressed this vulnerability by releasing interim fixes.
More information can be found via the Bulletins tab of IBM's
Subscription Service for UNIX and Linux servers. You can reach this
service by clicking the URL shown below.
http://www14.software.ibm.com/webapp/set2/subscriptions/pqvcmjd?mode=1
VII. CVE INFORMATION
The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) project has assigned the
name CVE-2007-4513 to this issue. This is a candidate for inclusion in
the CVE list (http://cve.mitre.org/), which standardizes names for
security problems.
VIII. DISCLOSURE TIMELINE
08/21/2007 Initial vendor notification
08/22/2007 Initial vendor response
10/30/2007 Coordinated public disclosure
IX. CREDIT
This vulnerability was discovered by Sean Larsson of VeriSign iDefense
Labs.
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X. LEGAL NOTICES
Copyright © 2007 iDefense, Inc.
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Disclaimer: The information in the advisory is believed to be accurate
at the time of publishing based on currently available information. Use
of the information constitutes acceptance for use in an AS IS condition.
There are no warranties with regard to this information. Neither the
author nor the publisher accepts any liability for any direct,
indirect, or consequential loss or damage arising from use of, or
reliance on, this information.
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