__________________________________________________________ The U.S. Department of Energy Computer Incident Advisory Capability ___ __ __ _ ___ / | /_\ / \___ __|__ / \ \___ __________________________________________________________ INFORMATION BULLETIN Sun Solaris newtask(1) Command Vulnerability [Sun(sm) Alert Notification 52111] April 1, 2003 21:00 GMT Number N-069 ______________________________________________________________________________ PROBLEM: A vulnerability exists in the newtask(1) command that may lead to unauthorized root access. PLATFORM: Solaris 9 DAMAGE: If exploited, a local unprivileged user may be able to gain unauthorized root access. SOLUTION: Apply patch or workaround. ______________________________________________________________________________ VULNERABILITY The risk is MEDIUM. In order to exploit this vulnerability, an ASSESSMENT: attacker would need a legitimate account on the target machine to upgrade the privileges as described. ______________________________________________________________________________ LINKS: CIAC BULLETIN: http://www.ciac.org/ciac/bulletins/n-069.shtml ORIGINAL BULLETIN: http://www.sunsolve.sun.com/pub-cgi/ retrieve.pl?doc=fsalert%2F52111&zone_32=category%3Asecurity ______________________________________________________________________________ [***** Start Sun(sm) Alert Notification 52111 *****] Sun(sm) Alert Notification Sun Alert ID: 52111 Synopsis: On Solaris 9 a Security Issue with the newtask(1) Command May Lead to Unauthorized Root Access Category: Security Product: Solaris BugIDs: 4798119 Avoidance: Patch State: Resolved Date Released: 28-Mar-2003 Date Closed: 28-Mar-2003 Date Modified: 1. Impact A local unprivileged user may be able to gain unauthorized root access due to a security issue with the newtask(1) command in Solaris 9. 2. Contributing Factors This issue can occur in the following releases: SPARC Platform Solaris 9 without patch 114713-01 x86 Platform Solaris 9 without patch 114714-01 Notes: Solaris 2.6 and 7 do not have the newtask(1) command and are therefore not affected by this issue. Solaris 8 is not affected by this issue. 3. Symptoms There are no predictable symptoms that would show the described problem has been exploited to gain root privileges. Solution Summary Top 4. Relief/Workaround To work around the described issue, remove the setuid bit from newtask(1): # chmod u-s /usr/bin/sparcv7/newtask # chmod u-s /usr/bin/sparcv9/newtask # chmod u-s /usr/sbin/i86/whodo Note: removing the set-user-ID bit from the "newtask" binary will prevent unprivileged users from using the "newtask" command. 5. Resolution This issue is addressed in the following releases: SPARC Platform Solaris 9 with patch 114713-01 or later x86 Platform Solaris 9 with patch 114714-01 or later This Sun Alert notification is being provided to you on an "AS IS" basis. This Sun Alert notification may contain information provided by third parties. The issues described in this Sun Alert notification may or may not impact your system(s). Sun makes no representations, warranties, or guarantees as to the information contained herein. ANY AND ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, OR NON-INFRINGEMENT, ARE HEREBY DISCLAIMED. BY ACCESSING THIS DOCUMENT YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT SUN SHALL IN NO EVENT BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, PUNITIVE, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES THAT ARISE OUT OF YOUR USE OR FAILURE TO USE THE INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN. 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[***** End Sun(sm) Alert Notification 52111 *****] _______________________________________________________________________________ CIAC wishes to acknowledge the contributions of Sun Microsystems, Inc. for the information contained in this bulletin. _______________________________________________________________________________ CIAC, the Computer Incident Advisory Capability, is the computer security incident response team for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the emergency backup response team for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). CIAC is located at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in Livermore, California. CIAC is also a founding member of FIRST, the Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams, a global organization established to foster cooperation and coordination among computer security teams worldwide. CIAC services are available to DOE, DOE contractors, and the NIH. 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