1. Gentoo Linux Security Advisory
| Advisory Reference | GLSA 200405-12 / cvs |
| Release Date | May 20, 2004 |
| Latest Revision | May 20, 2004: 01 |
| Impact | high |
| Exploitable | remote |
| Package | Vulnerable versions | Unaffected versions | Architecture(s) |
| dev-util/cvs | <= 1.11.15 | >= 1.11.16 | All supported architectures |
Related bugreports: #51460
CVS is subject to a heap overflow vulnerability allowing source repository compromise.
CVS (Concurrent Versions System) is an open-source network-transparent version control system. It contains both a client utility and a server.
Stefan Esser discovered a heap overflow in the CVS server, which can be triggered by sending malicious "Entry" lines and manipulating the flags related to that Entry. This vulnerability was proven to be exploitable.
A remote attacker can execute arbitrary code on the CVS server, with the rights of the CVS server. By default, Gentoo uses the "cvs" user to run the CVS server. In particular, this flaw allows a complete compromise of CVS source repositories. If you're not running a server, then you are not vulnerable.
There is no known workaround at this time. All users are advised to upgrade to the latest available version of CVS.
All users running a CVS server should upgrade to the latest stable version:
Code Listing 3.1: Resolution |
# emerge sync # emerge -pv ">=dev-util/cvs-1.11.16" # emerge ">=dev-util/cvs-1.11.16" |