#VU12434 Configuration error in Hesiod - CVE-2016-10152

Vulnerability identifier: #VU12434

Vulnerability risk: Low

CVSSv4.0: 8.1 [CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:U/U:Clear]

CVE-ID: CVE-2016-10152

CWE-ID: CWE-16

Exploitation vector: Network

Exploit availability: No

Vulnerable software:
Hesiod
Server applications / DNS servers

Vendor: Achernya

Description
The vulnerability allows a remote attacker to gain elevated privileges on the target system.

The weakness exists in the read_config_file function in lib/hesiod. due to falling back to the ".athena.mit.edu" default domain when opening the configuration file fails. A remote attacker can poison the DNS cache and gain root privileges.

Mitigation
Install update from vendor's website.

Vulnerable software versions

Hesiod: 3.2.1

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External links
https://github.com/achernya/hesiod/pull/10

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Q & A

Can this vulnerability be exploited remotely?

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

Is there known malware, which exploits this vulnerability?

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