Privilege escalation in Antiword

1) Link following

EUVDB-ID: #VU32986

Risk: Low

CVSSv4.0: 5.9 [CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:U/U:Clear]

CVE-ID: CVE-2005-3126

CWE-ID: CWE-59 - Improper Link Resolution Before File Access ('Link Following')

Exploit availability: No

Description

The vulnerability allows a local user to escalate privileges on the system.

The (1) kantiword (kantiword.sh) and (2) gantiword (gantiword.sh) scripts in antiword 0.35 and earlier allow local users to overwrite arbitrary files via a symlink attack on temporary (a) output and (b) error files.

Mitigation

Install updates from vendor's website.

Vulnerable software versions

antiword: 0.32 - 0.35

CPE2.3

• cpe:2.3:a:ropensci:antiword:0.32:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:ropensci:antiword:0.33:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:a:ropensci:antiword:0.34:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

External links

https://www.debian.org/security/2005/dsa-945
https://www.securityfocus.com/bid/16278
https://www.vupen.com/english/advisories/2006/0242
https://exchange.xforce.ibmcloud.com/vulnerabilities/24194

Q & A

Can this vulnerability be exploited remotely?

No. This vulnerability can be exploited locally. The attacker should have authentication credentials and successfully authenticate on the system.

Is there known malware, which exploits this vulnerability?

No. We are not aware of malware exploiting this vulnerability.