GLSA 200509-17 Webmin, Usermin: Remote code execution through PAM authentication

Gentoo Linux Security Advisory GLSA 200509-17
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http://security.gentoo.org/
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Severity: High
Title: Webmin, Usermin: Remote code execution through PAM
authentication
Date: September 24, 2005
Bugs: #106705
ID: 200509-17

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Synopsis
========

If Webmin or Usermin is configured to use full PAM conversations, it is
vulnerable to the remote execution of arbitrary code with root
privileges.

Background
==========

Webmin and Usermin are web-based system administration consoles. Webmin
allows an administrator to easily configure servers and other features.
Usermin allows users to configure their own accounts, execute commands,
and read e-mails.

Affected packages
=================

-------------------------------------------------------------------
Package / Vulnerable / Unaffected
-------------------------------------------------------------------
1 app-admin/webmin lt; 1.230 gt;= 1.230
2 app-admin/usermin lt; 1.160 gt;= 1.160
-------------------------------------------------------------------
2 affected packages on all of their supported architectures.
-------------------------------------------------------------------

Description
===========

Keigo Yamazaki discovered that the miniserv.pl webserver, used in both
Webmin and Usermin, does not properly validate authentication
credentials before sending them to the PAM (Pluggable Authentication
Modules) authentication process. The default configuration shipped with
Gentoo does not enable the "full PAM conversations" option and is
therefore unaffected by this flaw.

Impact
======

A remote attacker could bypass the authentication process and run any
command as the root user on the target server.

Workaround
==========

Do not enable "full PAM conversations" in the Authentication options of
Webmin and Usermin.

Resolution
==========

All Webmin users should upgrade to the latest version:

# emerge --sync
# emerge --ask --oneshot --verbose "gt;=app-admin/webmin-1.230"

All Usermin users should upgrade to the latest version:

# emerge --sync
# emerge --ask --oneshot --verbose "gt;=app-admin/usermin-1.160"

References
==========

[ 1 ] CAN-2005-3042
http://cve.mitre.org/cgi-bin/cvename.cgi?nameÊN-2005-3042
[ 2 ] Original Advisory

http://www.lac.co.jp/business/sns/intelligence/SNSadvisory_e/83_e.html

Availability
============

This GLSA and any updates to it are available for viewing at
the Gentoo Security Website:

http://security.gentoo.org/glsa/glsa-200509-17.xml

Concerns?
=========

Security is a primary focus of Gentoo Linux and ensuring the
confidentiality and security of our users machines is of utmost
importance to us. Any security concerns should be addressed to
security@gentoo.org or alternatively, you may file a bug at
http://bugs.gentoo.org.

License
=======

Copyright 2005 Gentoo Foundation, Inc; referenced text
belongs to its owner(s).

The contents of this document are licensed under the
Creative Commons - Attribution / Share Alike license.

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0