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Home : Advisories : Installation scripts in several SunSoft demo CDs
| Title: |
Installation scripts in several SunSoft demo CDs |
| Released by: |
SUN |
| Date: |
28th February 1995 |
| Printable version: |
Click here |
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SUN MICROSYSTEMS SECURITY BULLETIN: #00132, 28 February 1995
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BULLETIN TOPICS
In this bulletin Sun announces a potential security vulnerability
which can result from interrupting the installation script on several
demo CD's. We describe how to determine if your system is affected,
and how to remove the potential security vulnerability with one or
two simple commands. No patches are needed.
In addition to issuing this bulletin, Sun is sending letters to those
customers known to have received the CD's.
I. Who is affected and what to do
II. Understanding the vulnerability
III. Acknowledgments
APPENDICES
A. How to obtain Sun security patches
B. How to report or inquire about Sun security problems
C. How to obtain Sun security bulletins
/\ Send Replies or Inquiries To:
\\ \
\ \\ / Mark Graff
/ \/ / / Sun Security Coordinator
/ / \//\ MS MPK17-103
\//\ / / 2550 Garcia Avenue
/ / /\ / Mountain View, CA 94043-1100
/ \\ \ Phone: 415-786-5274
\ \\ Fax: 415-786-7994
\/ E-mail: security-alert@Sun.COM
-----------
Permission is granted for the redistribution of this Bulletin for
the purpose of alerting Sun customers to problems, as long as the
Bulletin is not edited and is attributed to Sun Microsystems.
Any other use of this information without the express written consent
of Sun Microsystems is prohibited. Sun Microsystems expressly disclaims
all liability for any misuse of this information by any third party.
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SUN MICROSYSTEMS SECURITY BULLETIN: #00132, 28 February 1995
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I. Who is affected and what to do
Sun has discovered that installation scripts in several SunSoft demo CD's
contain a flaw which could weaken the security of systems on which the demo
software is installed. We are alerting our customers so that those who
are affected can take appropriate action.
Date Title Part #
---- ----- ------
Sep-Dec '95 Catalyst CDWARE (Sparc) 724-1308-03, Rev D
Jan-Mar '96 Catalyst CDWARE (Sparc) 724-1308-03, Rev E
Jan-Mar '96 Catalyst CDWARE (x86) 724-1433-05, Rev C
Dec '95 SunSoft Developer CD, Premiere Issue 95459-001
Jan '96 Business Solutions 95536-001
You need only be concerned if you:
* Received one of the listed CD's; and
* Installed the software on it, using the installation script; and
* Interrupted the installation script before it could exit normally.
If you did install the software, you should check whether the string
"x-spam-sh" appears in the ".mailcap" file in your home directory,
by issuing a command such as:
grep x-spam-sh $HOME/.mailcap
If the string appears in the file, use a text editor to delete any lines
which include it, then exit any Web browsers you are currently running.
When you have completed these steps, the potential security weakness is gone.
You can then restart a browser without reopening the vulnerability.
II. Understanding the vulnerability
The potential security weakness arises only when the installation script is
interrupted, causing it to terminate before undoing a temporary modification
to the ".mailcap" file.
If you were to use a Web browser while the ".mailcap" modification was
in effect, your browser might be caused to execute commands on your system
without your knowledge--if you happened to visit a Web page which exploited
this flaw. (We believe no such sites exist at this time.)
It might also be possible under these circumstances for such hidden
commands to be executed on your behalf as the result of an electronic
mail message. However, all of the mail programs we have tested would
require your confirmation before executing the commands.
We apologize for any inconvenience this problem may have caused. We have
taken steps to ensure that it will not happen again.
III. Acknowledgments
Sun would like to thank Steve Neruda, of Nationwide Insurance, and
CERT/CC for their assistance.
APPENDICES
A. How to obtain Sun security patches
1. If you have a support contract
Customers with Sun support contracts can obtain any patches listed
in this bulletin (and any other patches--and a list of patches) from:
- Local Sun answer centers, worldwide
- SunSITEs worldwide
- SunSolve Online
The patches are available via World Wide Web at http://sunsolve1.sun.com.
You should also contact your answer center if you have a support
contract and:
- You need assistance in installing a patch
- You need additional patches
- You want an existing patch ported to another platform
- You believe you have encountered a bug in a Sun patch
- You want to know if a patch exists, or when one will be ready
2. If you do not have a support contract
Customers without support contracts may now obtain security patches,
"recommended" patches, and patch lists via SunSolve Online.
Sun also makes its security patches available via anonymous ftp, from
the directory /systems/sun/sun-dist on the system ftp.uu.net.
However, the ftp.uu.net repository will be discontinued in the near
future. The availability of security patches via the SunSolve patch
database has made it redundant.
Sun does not furnish patches to any external distribution sites
other than the ones mentioned here.
3. About the checksums
Patches announced in a Sun security bulletin are uploaded to the
ftp.*.net sites just before the bulletin is released, and seldom
updated. In contrast, the "supported" patch databases are
refreshed nightly, and will often contain newer versions of a patch
incorporating changes which are not security-related.
So that you can quickly verify the integrity of the patch files
themselves, we supply checksums for the tar archives in each
bulletin. The listed checksums should always match those on the
ftp.*.net systems. (The rare exceptions are listed in the
"checksums" file there.)
Normally, the listed checksums will also match the patches on the
SunSolve database. However, this will not be true if we have
changed (as we sometimes do) the README file in the patch after the
bulletin has been released.
In the future we plan to provide checksum information for the
individual components of a patch as well as the compressed archive
file. This will allow customers to determine, if need be, which
file(s) have been changed since we issued the bulletin containing
the checksums.
If you would like assistance in verifying the integrity of a patch
file please contact this office or your local answer center.
B. How to report or inquire about Sun security problems
If you discover a security problem with Sun software or wish to
inquire about a possible problem, contact one or more of the
following:
- Your local Sun answer centers
- Your representative computer security response team, such as CERT
- This office. Address postal mail to:
Sun Security Coordinator
MS MPK17-103
2550 Garcia Avenue Mountain
View, CA 94043-1100
Phone: 415-786-5274
Fax: 415-786-7994
E-mail: security-alert@Sun.COM
We strongly recommend that you report problems to your local Answer
Center. In some cases they will accept a report of a security bug
even if you do not have a support contract. An additional notification
to the security-alert alias is suggested but should not be used as your
primary vehicle for reporting a bug.
C. How to obtain Sun security bulletins
1. Subscription information
Sun Security Bulletins are available free of charge as part of
our Customer Warning System. It is not necessary to have a Sun
support contract in order to receive them.
To receive information or to subscribe or unsubscribe from our
mailing list, send mail to security-alert@sun.com with a subject
line containing one of the following commands.
Subject Information Returned/Action Taken
------- ---------------------------------
HELP An explanation of how to get information
LIST A list of current security topics
QUERY [topic] The mail containing the question is relayed to
a Security Coordinator for a response.
REPORT [topic] The mail containing the text is treated as a
security bug report and forwarded to a Security
Coordinator for handling. Please note that this
channel of communications does not supersede
the use of Sun Solution Centers for this
purpose. Note also that we do not recommend
that detailed problem descriptions be sent in
plain text.
SEND topic Summary of the status of selected topic
SUBSCRIBE Sender is added to the CWS (Customer
Warning System) list. The subscribe feature
requires that the sender include on the subject
line the word "cws" and the reply email
address. So the subject line might look like
the following:
SUBSCRIBE cws graff@sun.com
UNSUBSCRIBE Sender is removed from the CWS list.
Should your email not fit into one of the above subjects, a help
message will be returned to you.
Due to the volume of subscription requests we receive, we cannot
guarantee to acknowledge requests. Please contact this office if
you wish to verify that your subscription request was received, or
if you would like your bulletin delivered via postal mail or fax.
2. Obtaining old bulletins
Sun Security Bulletins are archived on ftp.uu.net (in the same
directory as the patches) and on SunSolve. Please try these
sources first before contacting this office for old bulletins.
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