GLSA 200411-33: TWiki: Arbitrary command execution

http://security.gentoo.org/

Severity:	high
Title:	TWiki: Arbitrary command execution
Date:	11/24/2004
Bugs:	#71035
ID:	200411-33

Synopsis

A bug in the TWiki search function allows an attacker to execute arbitrary commands with the permissions of the user running TWiki.

Background

TWiki is a Web-based groupware tool based around the concept of wiki pages that can be edited by anybody with a Web browser.

Affected packages

Package	Vulnerable	Unaffected	Architecture(s)
www-apps/twiki	< 20040902	>= 20040902	All supported architectures

Description

The TWiki search function, which uses a shell command executed via the Perl backtick operator, does not properly escape shell metacharacters in the user-provided search string.

Impact

An attacker can insert malicious commands into a search request, allowing the execution of arbitrary commands with the privileges of the user running TWiki (usually the Web server user).

Workaround

There is no known workaround at this time.

Resolution

All TWiki users should upgrade to the latest version:

    # emerge --sync
    # emerge --ask --oneshot --verbose ">=www-apps/twiki-20040902"

References

Availability

This GLSA and any updates to it are available for viewing at the Gentoo Security Website: http://security.gentoo.org/glsa/glsa-200411-33.xml

Concerns?

Security is a primary focus of Gentoo Linux and ensuring the confidentiality and security of our users machines is of utmost importance to us. Any security concerns should be addressed to security@gentoo.org or alternatively, you may file a bug at https://bugs.gentoo.org.