GLSA 201412-48: file: Denial of Service

Severity:normal
Title:file: Denial of Service
Date:12/27/2014
Bugs: #532686
ID:201412-48

Synopsis

A vulnerability in file could allow a context-dependent attack to create a Denial of Service condition.

Background

The file utility attempts to identify a file’s format by scanning binary data for patterns.

Affected packages

Package Vulnerable Unaffected Architecture(s)
sys-apps/file < 5.21 >= 5.21 All supported architectures

Description

An issue with the ELF parser used by the file utility can cause a resource consumption when reading a specially-crafted ELF binary.

Impact

A context-dependent attacker may be able to cause Denial of Service.

Workaround

There is no known workaround at this time.

Resolution

All file users should upgrade to the latest version:

      # emerge --sync
      # emerge --ask --oneshot --verbose ">=sys-apps/file-5.21"
    

References

Availability

This GLSA and any updates to it are available for viewing at the Gentoo Security Website: http://security.gentoo.org/glsa/glsa-201412-48.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 https://bugs.gentoo.org.

License

Copyright 2010 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.

Thank you!