Vulnerabilities > CVE-2018-11781 - Code Injection vulnerability in multiple products

047910
CVSS 7.8 - HIGH
Attack vector
LOCAL
Attack complexity
LOW
Privileges required
LOW
Confidentiality impact
HIGH
Integrity impact
HIGH
Availability impact
HIGH
local
low complexity
apache
redhat
debian
canonical
CWE-94
nessus

Summary

Apache SpamAssassin 3.4.2 fixes a local user code injection in the meta rule syntax.

Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC)

  • Leverage Executable Code in Non-Executable Files
    An attack of this type exploits a system's trust in configuration and resource files, when the executable loads the resource (such as an image file or configuration file) the attacker has modified the file to either execute malicious code directly or manipulate the target process (e.g. application server) to execute based on the malicious configuration parameters. Since systems are increasingly interrelated mashing up resources from local and remote sources the possibility of this attack occurring is high. The attack can be directed at a client system, such as causing buffer overrun through loading seemingly benign image files, as in Microsoft Security Bulletin MS04-028 where specially crafted JPEG files could cause a buffer overrun once loaded into the browser. Another example targets clients reading pdf files. In this case the attacker simply appends javascript to the end of a legitimate url for a pdf (http://www.gnucitizen.org/blog/danger-danger-danger/) http://path/to/pdf/file.pdf#whatever_name_you_want=javascript:your_code_here The client assumes that they are reading a pdf, but the attacker has modified the resource and loaded executable javascript into the client's browser process. The attack can also target server processes. The attacker edits the resource or configuration file, for example a web.xml file used to configure security permissions for a J2EE app server, adding role name "public" grants all users with the public role the ability to use the administration functionality. The server trusts its configuration file to be correct, but when they are manipulated, the attacker gains full control.
  • Manipulating User-Controlled Variables
    This attack targets user controlled variables (DEBUG=1, PHP Globals, and So Forth). An attacker can override environment variables leveraging user-supplied, untrusted query variables directly used on the application server without any data sanitization. In extreme cases, the attacker can change variables controlling the business logic of the application. For instance, in languages like PHP, a number of poorly set default configurations may allow the user to override variables.

Nessus

  • NASL familyAmazon Linux Local Security Checks
    NASL idAL2_ALAS-2018-1103.NASL
    descriptionA flaw was found in the way SpamAssassin processes HTML email containing unclosed HTML tags. A carefully crafted mail message could cause SpamAssassin to consume significant resources. If a large number of these messages are sent, a denial of service could occur potentially delaying or preventing the delivery of email.(CVE-2017-15705) A flaw was found in the way a local user on the SpamAssassin server could inject code in the meta rule syntax. This could cause the arbitrary code execution on the server when these rules are being processed.(CVE-2018-11781)
    last seen2020-06-01
    modified2020-06-02
    plugin id118834
    published2018-11-09
    reporterThis script is Copyright (C) 2018 and is owned by Tenable, Inc. or an Affiliate thereof.
    sourcehttps://www.tenable.com/plugins/nessus/118834
    titleAmazon Linux 2 : spamassassin (ALAS-2018-1103)
  • NASL familyOracle Linux Local Security Checks
    NASL idORACLELINUX_ELSA-2018-2916.NASL
    descriptionFrom Red Hat Security Advisory 2018:2916 : An update for spamassassin is now available for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7. Red Hat Product Security has rated this update as having a security impact of Important. A Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) base score, which gives a detailed severity rating, is available for each vulnerability from the CVE link(s) in the References section. The SpamAssassin tool provides a way to reduce unsolicited commercial email (spam) from incoming email. Security Fix(es) : * spamassassin: Certain unclosed tags in crafted emails allow for scan timeouts and result in denial of service (CVE-2017-15705) * spamassassin: Local user code injection in the meta rule syntax (CVE-2018-11781) For more details about the security issue(s), including the impact, a CVSS score, and other related information, refer to the CVE page(s) listed in the References section.
    last seen2020-06-01
    modified2020-06-02
    plugin id118076
    published2018-10-12
    reporterThis script is Copyright (C) 2018-2019 and is owned by Tenable, Inc. or an Affiliate thereof.
    sourcehttps://www.tenable.com/plugins/nessus/118076
    titleOracle Linux 7 : spamassassin (ELSA-2018-2916)
  • NASL familyFreeBSD Local Security Checks
    NASL idFREEBSD_PKG_613193A0C1B411E8AE2D54E1AD3D6335.NASL
    descriptionthe Apache Spamassassin project reports : In Apache SpamAssassin, using HTML::Parser, we setup an object and hook into the begin and end tag event handlers In both cases, the
    last seen2020-06-01
    modified2020-06-02
    plugin id117721
    published2018-09-27
    reporterThis script is Copyright (C) 2018-2020 and is owned by Tenable, Inc. or an Affiliate thereof.
    sourcehttps://www.tenable.com/plugins/nessus/117721
    titleFreeBSD : spamassassin -- multiple vulnerabilities (613193a0-c1b4-11e8-ae2d-54e1ad3d6335)
  • NASL familySuSE Local Security Checks
    NASL idOPENSUSE-2019-1831.NASL
    descriptionThis update for spamassassin to version 3.4.2 fixes the following issues : Security issues fixed : - CVE-2018-11781: Fixed an issue where a local user could inject code in the meta rule syntax (bsc#1108748). - CVE-2018-11780: Fixed a potential remote code execution vulnerability in the PDFInfo plugin (bsc#1108750). - CVE-2017-15705: Fixed a denial of service through unclosed tags in crafted emails (bsc#1108745). - CVE-2016-1238: Fixed an issue where perl would load modules from the current directory (bsc#1108749). Non-security issues fixed : - Use systemd timers instead of cron (bsc#1115411) - Fixed incompatibility with Net::DNS >= 1.01 (bsc#1107765) - Fixed warning about deprecated regex during sa-update (bsc#1069831) This update was imported from the SUSE:SLE-15:Update update project.
    last seen2020-06-01
    modified2020-06-02
    plugin id127739
    published2019-08-12
    reporterThis script is Copyright (C) 2019-2020 and is owned by Tenable, Inc. or an Affiliate thereof.
    sourcehttps://www.tenable.com/plugins/nessus/127739
    titleopenSUSE Security Update : spamassassin (openSUSE-2019-1831)
  • NASL familyFedora Local Security Checks
    NASL idFEDORA_2018-6ED251C42B.NASL
    descriptionFixed some small bugs in the previous package: Initial rules now have the correct version, sought channel config is dropped (since it doesn
    last seen2020-06-05
    modified2018-10-01
    plugin id117840
    published2018-10-01
    reporterThis script is Copyright (C) 2018-2020 and is owned by Tenable, Inc. or an Affiliate thereof.
    sourcehttps://www.tenable.com/plugins/nessus/117840
    titleFedora 27 : spamassassin (2018-6ed251c42b)
  • NASL familyDebian Local Security Checks
    NASL idDEBIAN_DLA-1578.NASL
    descriptionMultiple vulnerabilities were found in Spamassassin, which could lead to Remote Code Execution and Denial of Service attacks under certain circumstances. CVE-2016-1238 Many Perl programs do not properly remove . (period) characters from the end of the includes directory array, which might allow local users to gain privileges via a Trojan horse module under the current working directory. CVE-2017-15705 A denial of service vulnerability was identified that exists in Apache SpamAssassin before 3.4.2. The vulnerability arises with certain unclosed tags in emails that cause markup to be handled incorrectly leading to scan timeouts. This can cause carefully crafted emails that might take more scan time than expected leading to a Denial of Service. CVE-2018-11780 A potential Remote Code Execution bug exists with the PDFInfo plugin in Apache SpamAssassin before 3.4.2. CVE-2018-11781 Apache SpamAssassin 3.4.2 fixes a local user code injection in the meta rule syntax. For Debian 8
    last seen2020-06-01
    modified2020-06-02
    plugin id118938
    published2018-11-14
    reporterThis script is Copyright (C) 2018 and is owned by Tenable, Inc. or an Affiliate thereof.
    sourcehttps://www.tenable.com/plugins/nessus/118938
    titleDebian DLA-1578-1 : spamassassin security update
  • NASL familySuSE Local Security Checks
    NASL idSUSE_SU-2019-2011-1.NASL
    descriptionThis update for spamassassin to version 3.4.2 fixes the following issues : Security issues fixed : CVE-2018-11781: Fixed an issue where a local user could inject code in the meta rule syntax (bsc#1108748). CVE-2018-11780: Fixed a potential remote code execution vulnerability in the PDFInfo plugin (bsc#1108750). CVE-2017-15705: Fixed a denial of service through unclosed tags in crafted emails (bsc#1108745). CVE-2016-1238: Fixed an issue where perl would load modules from the current directory (bsc#1108749). Non-security issues fixed: Use systemd timers instead of cron (bsc#1115411) Fixed incompatibility with Net::DNS >= 1.01 (bsc#1107765) Fixed warning about deprecated regex during sa-update (bsc#1069831) Note that Tenable Network Security has extracted the preceding description block directly from the SUSE security advisory. Tenable has attempted to automatically clean and format it as much as possible without introducing additional issues.
    last seen2020-06-01
    modified2020-06-02
    plugin id127751
    published2019-08-12
    reporterThis script is Copyright (C) 2019-2020 and is owned by Tenable, Inc. or an Affiliate thereof.
    sourcehttps://www.tenable.com/plugins/nessus/127751
    titleSUSE SLED15 / SLES15 Security Update : spamassassin (SUSE-SU-2019:2011-1)
  • NASL familyNewStart CGSL Local Security Checks
    NASL idNEWSTART_CGSL_NS-SA-2019-0041_SPAMASSASSIN.NASL
    descriptionThe remote NewStart CGSL host, running version CORE 5.04 / MAIN 5.04, has spamassassin packages installed that are affected by multiple vulnerabilities: - A flaw was found in the way a local user on the SpamAssassin server could inject code in the meta rule syntax. This could cause the arbitrary code execution on the server when these rules are being processed. (CVE-2018-11781) - A flaw was found in the way SpamAssassin processes HTML email containing unclosed HTML tags. A carefully crafted mail message could cause SpamAssassin to consume significant resources. If a large number of these messages are sent, a denial of service could occur potentially delaying or preventing the delivery of email. (CVE-2017-15705) Note that Nessus has not tested for this issue but has instead relied only on the application
    last seen2020-06-01
    modified2020-06-02
    plugin id127217
    published2019-08-12
    reporterThis script is Copyright (C) 2019 and is owned by Tenable, Inc. or an Affiliate thereof.
    sourcehttps://www.tenable.com/plugins/nessus/127217
    titleNewStart CGSL CORE 5.04 / MAIN 5.04 : spamassassin Multiple Vulnerabilities (NS-SA-2019-0041)
  • NASL familySuSE Local Security Checks
    NASL idSUSE_SU-2019-1961-1.NASL
    descriptionThis update for spamassassin to version 3.4.2 fixes the following issues : Security issues fixed : CVE-2017-15705: Fixed denial of service via unclosed tags in crafted emails (bsc#1108745). CVE-2018-11781: Fixed a code injection in the meta rule syntax by local users (bsc#1108748). CVE-2018-11780: Fixed a potential remote code execution vulnerability in PDFInfo plugin (bsc#1108750). Non-security issues fixed: Added four new plugins (disabled by default): HashBL, ResourceLimits, FromNameSpoof, Phishing sa-update script: optional support for SHA-256 / SHA-512 been added for better validation of rules GeoIP2 support has been added to RelayCountry and URILocalBL plugins Several new or enhanced configuration options Note that Tenable Network Security has extracted the preceding description block directly from the SUSE security advisory. Tenable has attempted to automatically clean and format it as much as possible without introducing additional issues.
    last seen2020-06-01
    modified2020-06-02
    plugin id127038
    published2019-07-25
    reporterThis script is Copyright (C) 2019-2020 and is owned by Tenable, Inc. or an Affiliate thereof.
    sourcehttps://www.tenable.com/plugins/nessus/127038
    titleSUSE SLED12 / SLES12 Security Update : spamassassin (SUSE-SU-2019:1961-1)
  • NASL familyScientific Linux Local Security Checks
    NASL idSL_20181011_SPAMASSASSIN_ON_SL7_X.NASL
    descriptionSecurity Fix(es) : - spamassassin: Certain unclosed tags in crafted emails allow for scan timeouts and result in denial of service (CVE-2017-15705) - spamassassin: Local user code injection in the meta rule syntax (CVE-2018-11781)
    last seen2020-03-18
    modified2018-10-15
    plugin id118108
    published2018-10-15
    reporterThis script is Copyright (C) 2018-2020 and is owned by Tenable, Inc. or an Affiliate thereof.
    sourcehttps://www.tenable.com/plugins/nessus/118108
    titleScientific Linux Security Update : spamassassin on SL7.x x86_64 (20181011)
  • NASL familyAmazon Linux Local Security Checks
    NASL idALA_ALAS-2018-1091.NASL
    descriptionA flaw was found in the way a local user on the SpamAssassin server could inject code in the meta rule syntax. This could cause the arbitrary code execution on the server when these rules are being processed.(CVE-2018-11781) A potential Remote Code Execution bug exists with the PDFInfo plugin in Apache SpamAssassin before 3.4.2.(CVE-2018-11780) A flaw was found in the way SpamAssassin processes HTML email containing unclosed HTML tags. A carefully crafted mail message could cause SpamAssassin to consume significant resources. If a large number of these messages are sent, a denial of service could occur potentially delaying or preventing the delivery of email.(CVE-2017-15705)
    last seen2020-06-01
    modified2020-06-02
    plugin id118211
    published2018-10-19
    reporterThis script is Copyright (C) 2018 and is owned by Tenable, Inc. or an Affiliate thereof.
    sourcehttps://www.tenable.com/plugins/nessus/118211
    titleAmazon Linux AMI : spamassassin (ALAS-2018-1091)
  • NASL familyUbuntu Local Security Checks
    NASL idUBUNTU_USN-3811-1.NASL
    descriptionIt was discovered that SpamAssassin incorrectly handled certain unclosed tags in emails. A remote attacker could possibly use this issue to cause a denial of service. (CVE-2017-15705) It was discovered that SpamAssassin incorrectly handled the PDFInfo plugin. A remote attacker could possibly use this issue to execute arbitrary code. (CVE-2018-11780) It was discovered that SpamAssassin incorrectly handled meta rule syntax. A local attacker could possibly use this issue to execute arbitrary code. (CVE-2018-11781). Note that Tenable Network Security has extracted the preceding description block directly from the Ubuntu security advisory. Tenable has attempted to automatically clean and format it as much as possible without introducing additional issues.
    last seen2020-06-01
    modified2020-06-02
    plugin id118797
    published2018-11-07
    reporterUbuntu Security Notice (C) 2018-2019 Canonical, Inc. / NASL script (C) 2018-2019 and is owned by Tenable, Inc. or an Affiliate thereof.
    sourcehttps://www.tenable.com/plugins/nessus/118797
    titleUbuntu 14.04 LTS / 16.04 LTS / 18.04 LTS : spamassassin vulnerabilities (USN-3811-1)
  • NASL familyGentoo Local Security Checks
    NASL idGENTOO_GLSA-201812-07.NASL
    descriptionThe remote host is affected by the vulnerability described in GLSA-201812-07 (SpamAssassin: Multiple vulnerabilities) Multiple vulnerabilities have been discovered in SpamAssassin. Please review the referenced CVE identifiers for details. Impact : A remote attacker could execute arbitrary code, escalate privileges, or cause a Denial of Service condition. Workaround : There is no known workaround at this time.
    last seen2020-03-28
    modified2018-12-17
    plugin id119703
    published2018-12-17
    reporterThis script is Copyright (C) 2018-2020 and is owned by Tenable, Inc. or an Affiliate thereof.
    sourcehttps://www.tenable.com/plugins/nessus/119703
    titleGLSA-201812-07 : SpamAssassin: Multiple vulnerabilities
  • NASL familyCentOS Local Security Checks
    NASL idCENTOS_RHSA-2018-2916.NASL
    descriptionAn update for spamassassin is now available for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7. Red Hat Product Security has rated this update as having a security impact of Important. A Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) base score, which gives a detailed severity rating, is available for each vulnerability from the CVE link(s) in the References section. The SpamAssassin tool provides a way to reduce unsolicited commercial email (spam) from incoming email. Security Fix(es) : * spamassassin: Certain unclosed tags in crafted emails allow for scan timeouts and result in denial of service (CVE-2017-15705) * spamassassin: Local user code injection in the meta rule syntax (CVE-2018-11781) For more details about the security issue(s), including the impact, a CVSS score, and other related information, refer to the CVE page(s) listed in the References section.
    last seen2020-06-01
    modified2020-06-02
    plugin id118117
    published2018-10-16
    reporterThis script is Copyright (C) 2018-2020 and is owned by Tenable, Inc. or an Affiliate thereof.
    sourcehttps://www.tenable.com/plugins/nessus/118117
    titleCentOS 7 : spamassassin (CESA-2018:2916)
  • NASL familyRed Hat Local Security Checks
    NASL idREDHAT-RHSA-2018-2916.NASL
    descriptionAn update for spamassassin is now available for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7. Red Hat Product Security has rated this update as having a security impact of Important. A Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) base score, which gives a detailed severity rating, is available for each vulnerability from the CVE link(s) in the References section. The SpamAssassin tool provides a way to reduce unsolicited commercial email (spam) from incoming email. Security Fix(es) : * spamassassin: Certain unclosed tags in crafted emails allow for scan timeouts and result in denial of service (CVE-2017-15705) * spamassassin: Local user code injection in the meta rule syntax (CVE-2018-11781) For more details about the security issue(s), including the impact, a CVSS score, and other related information, refer to the CVE page(s) listed in the References section.
    last seen2020-06-01
    modified2020-06-02
    plugin id118077
    published2018-10-12
    reporterThis script is Copyright (C) 2018-2019 and is owned by Tenable, Inc. or an Affiliate thereof.
    sourcehttps://www.tenable.com/plugins/nessus/118077
    titleRHEL 7 : spamassassin (RHSA-2018:2916)
  • NASL familyFedora Local Security Checks
    NASL idFEDORA_2018-8F0DF2C366.NASL
    descriptionFixed some small bugs in the previous package: Initial rules now have the correct version, sought channel config is dropped (since it doesn
    last seen2020-06-05
    modified2019-01-03
    plugin id120609
    published2019-01-03
    reporterThis script is Copyright (C) 2019-2020 and is owned by Tenable, Inc. or an Affiliate thereof.
    sourcehttps://www.tenable.com/plugins/nessus/120609
    titleFedora 29 : spamassassin (2018-8f0df2c366)
  • NASL familyFedora Local Security Checks
    NASL idFEDORA_2018-46D7A7F63E.NASL
    descriptionFixed some small bugs in the previous package: Initial rules now have the correct version, sought channel config is dropped (since it doesn
    last seen2020-06-05
    modified2019-01-03
    plugin id120387
    published2019-01-03
    reporterThis script is Copyright (C) 2019-2020 and is owned by Tenable, Inc. or an Affiliate thereof.
    sourcehttps://www.tenable.com/plugins/nessus/120387
    titleFedora 28 : spamassassin (2018-46d7a7f63e)

Redhat

advisories
bugzilla
id1629536
titleCVE-2018-11781 spamassassin: Local user code injection in the meta rule syntax
oval
OR
  • commentRed Hat Enterprise Linux must be installed
    ovaloval:com.redhat.rhba:tst:20070304026
  • AND
    • commentRed Hat Enterprise Linux 7 is installed
      ovaloval:com.redhat.rhba:tst:20150364027
    • commentspamassassin is earlier than 0:3.4.0-4.el7_5
      ovaloval:com.redhat.rhsa:tst:20182916001
    • commentspamassassin is signed with Red Hat redhatrelease2 key
      ovaloval:com.redhat.rhsa:tst:20182916002
rhsa
idRHSA-2018:2916
released2018-10-11
severityImportant
titleRHSA-2018:2916: spamassassin security update (Important)
rpms
  • spamassassin-0:3.4.0-4.el7_5
  • spamassassin-debuginfo-0:3.4.0-4.el7_5