Path traversal in dpkg - CVE-2014-3227

Detailed vulnerability description

The vulnerability allows a remote non-authenticated attacker to manipulate or delete data.

dpkg 1.15.9, 1.16.x before 1.16.14, and 1.17.x before 1.17.9 expect the patch program to be compliant with a need for the "C-style encoded filenames" feature, but is supported in environments with noncompliant patch programs, which triggers an interaction error that allows remote attackers to conduct directory traversal attacks and modify files outside of the intended directories via a crafted source package. NOTE: this vulnerability exists because of reliance on unrealistic constraints on the behavior of an external program.

How to mitigate CVE-2014-3227

Sources

• http://openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2014/04/29/4
• http://openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2014/05/29/16
• https://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=746306