Remote code execution in GNOME Evolution

1) Buffer overflow

EUVDB-ID: #VU13404

Risk: High

CVSSv3.1: 8.7 [CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H/E:U/RL:O/RC:C]

CVE-ID: CVE-2018-12422

CWE-ID: CWE-120 - Buffer overflow

Exploit availability: No

Description

The vulnerability allows a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code on the target system.

The vulnerability exists in the strcat function of GNOME Evolution due to boundary error when improper processing of long query strings by the strcat function, as defined in the addressbook/backends/ldap/e-book-backend-ldap.c source code file in the Evolution-Data-Server package. A remote unauthenticated attacker can send a long query string, trigger memory corruption and cause the service to crash or execute arbitrary code with elevated privileges.

Successful exploitation of this vulnerability may result in complete compromise of vulnerable system.

Mitigation

Update to version 3.29.3.

Vulnerable software versions

Evolution: 2.0 - 3.29.2

External links

http://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/evolution-data-server/commit/34bad6173

Q & A

Can this vulnerability be exploited remotely?

Yes. This vulnerability can be exploited by a remote non-authenticated attacker via the Internet.

How the attacker can exploit this vulnerability?

The attacker would have to trick the victim to visit a specially crafted website or open a file.

Is there known malware, which exploits this vulnerability?

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