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Red Hat: RHSA-2013:0526-02 Low: Automake Local Exploit Risk

red hat
Calendar Grey February 21, 2013
Scroller Redhat
A minor automake patch for Red Hat Enterprise Linux mitigates a localized security vulnerability. Update promptly for safety.
An updated automake package that fixes one security issue is now available for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6

Solution

Before applying this update, make sure all previously-released errata relevant to your system have been applied.

This update is available via the Red Hat Network. Details on how to use the Red Hat Network to apply this update are available at https://access.redhat.com/articles/11258

Summary

Automake is a tool for automatically generating Makefile.in files compliant with the GNU Coding Standards.
It was found that the distcheck rule in Automake-generated Makefiles made a directory world-writable when preparing source archives. If a malicious, local user could access this directory, they could execute arbitrary code with the privileges of the user running "make distcheck". (CVE-2012-3386)
Red Hat would like to thank Jim Meyering for reporting this issue. Upstream acknowledges Stefano Lattarini as the original reporter.
Users of automake are advised to upgrade to this updated package, which corrects this issue.

References

https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2012-3386 https://access.redhat.com/security/updates/classification#low

Package List

Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop Optional (v. 6):
Source:
noarch: automake-1.11.1-4.el6.noarch.rpm
Red Hat Enterprise Linux HPC Node (v. 6):
Source:
noarch: automake-1.11.1-4.el6.noarch.rpm
Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server (v. 6):
Source:
noarch: automake-1.11.1-4.el6.noarch.rpm
Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation (v. 6):
Source:
noarch: automake-1.11.1-4.el6.noarch.rpm
These packages are GPG signed by Red Hat for security. Our key and details on how to verify the signature are available from https://access.redhat.com/security/team/key#package


Severity
low
Lowest
Low
Medium
High
Critical

Advisory ID: RHSA-2013:0526-02
Product: Red Hat Enterprise Linux
Issue date: 2013-02-21

Topic

An updated automake package that fixes one security issue is now availablefor Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.The Red Hat Security Response Team has rated this update as having lowsecurity impact. A Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) base score,which gives a detailed severity rating, is available from the CVE link inthe References section.

Relevant Releases Architectures

Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop Optional (v. 6) - noarch

Red Hat Enterprise Linux HPC Node (v. 6) - noarch

Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server (v. 6) - noarch

Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation (v. 6) - noarch

Bugs Fixed

838286 - CVE-2012-3386 automake: locally exploitable "make distcheck" bug

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