Re: [Re: Several FreeBSD-3.3 vulnerabilities]

From: Brock Tellier (btellierat_private)
Date: Wed Dec 01 1999 - 12:21:44 PST

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    Kris Kennaway <krisat_private> wrote:
    On Tue, 30 Nov 1999, Brock Tellier wrote:
    
    >> All of the vulnerabilities discussed herein are based on my work on
    >> FreeBSD 3.3-RELEASE. Each of the programs was installed with the
    >> default permissions given when unpacked with sysinstall. 
    >> These permissions are:
    >> -rwxr-sr-x 1 bin dialer 88480 Sep 11 00:55 /usr/X11R6/bin/seyon
    
    >This one was fixed a month ago after your last advisory. Obviously, if
    >you're still using the same version of the OS you used in your initial
    >advisory, it's not going to be fixed :-)
    
    No, I mentioned that older hole but I also revealed six more that were equally
    serious and presumably unpatched.  Unless your fix was to remove the suid-bit
    by default, seyon would still be vulnerable.
    
    
    >> -rwsr-xr-x 1 uucp bin 7780 Sep 11 05:15 /usr/X11R6/bin/xmindpath
    
    >This one is a hole in the vendor-provided software, which wants to >install
    >it setuid uucp by default. With ~2800 third-party apps shipped with
    >FreeBSD, we can't be held responsible for the security of all of them :-)
    
    This is the statement I have a bit of a problem with.  Sure there are 2800
    ports, but how many of these are suid/sgid?  I'm thinking *maybe* 50 that I
    saw when I did a full install of 3.3-RELEASE.  Fifty apps, most of which are
    small like xmindpath, isn't a ridiculous number to audit.  At LEAST auditing
    them for command-line overflows and setting up a /tmp watcher.  
    You may not be legally responsible, or be able to take responsibility for the
    quality of the code, but when you allow a third-party to put a *suid* program
    into your distribution you imply some sort of trust with the end-user
    regarding it's security integrity.  At least to the point that we can assume
    that someone has taken the time to xmindpath -arg $BUF.  Note that this isn't
    specifically directed at FreeBSD or free OS's.
    
    
    >> -r-xr-sr-x 1 bin games 481794 Sep 11 01:10 /usr/X11R6/bin/angband
    
    >This one is our fault (in the sense that installing it setgid games so it
    >can write a high score file is not something the software does by
    >default).
    
    >Your advisory wasn't clear whether or not you contacted the port
    >maintainers directly about these, and they were just slow off the mark, >or
    >if it was just security-officerat_private Assuming the former, one way
    >of expediting the process would be to send mail to the (new)
    >auditat_private mailing list which has several people who will be quite
    >happy to do some butt-kicking to get a response :-)
    
    No, I contacted security-officerat_private who responded that HE had
    contacted the maintainers.  That was the last I ever heard of it.  
    
    Brock Tellier
    UNIX Systems Administrator
    Chicago, IL, USA
    btellierat_private
    
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