CVE-2001-1015 in Snes9x
Summary
by MITRE
Buffer overflow in Snes9x 1.37, when installed setuid root, allows local users to gain root privileges via a long command line argument.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/17/2025
The vulnerability described in CVE-2001-1015 represents a critical buffer overflow flaw within the Snes9x emulator version 1.37 when executed with elevated privileges through setuid root permissions. This issue arises from insufficient input validation mechanisms that fail to properly handle command line arguments exceeding predetermined buffer limits. The vulnerability specifically affects systems where the Snes9x emulator binary has been configured with setuid root capabilities, creating a dangerous privilege escalation vector for local attackers who can manipulate command line parameters to overwrite memory regions beyond the allocated buffer space. The buffer overflow occurs during the parsing of command line arguments, where the emulator fails to validate the length of input parameters before copying them into fixed-size memory buffers. This flaw directly maps to CWE-121, which describes heap-based buffer overflow conditions, and CWE-125, which covers out-of-bounds read vulnerabilities that can lead to privilege escalation when combined with setuid execution contexts. The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple code execution, as it enables local users to elevate their privileges from standard user level to root access, effectively compromising the entire system. Attackers can exploit this weakness by crafting malicious command line arguments that exceed the buffer capacity, causing memory corruption that can be manipulated to redirect program execution flow. The exploitation process typically involves careful construction of input data that overflows the buffer and overwrites return addresses or other critical program state information, ultimately allowing the attacker to execute arbitrary code with root privileges. This vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1068, which focuses on privilege escalation through local exploitation of software vulnerabilities, and specifically targets the privilege escalation sub-technique T1068.001 for local exploit execution. The security implications are particularly severe in environments where setuid binaries are commonly used for legacy applications, as the combination of a buffer overflow vulnerability with setuid execution creates a direct path for privilege escalation. Organizations running affected versions of Snes9x must immediately address this issue through patching or by removing setuid permissions from the emulator binary, as the vulnerability provides attackers with an easily exploitable method for gaining administrative control over systems. The flaw demonstrates the critical importance of input validation in security-critical applications and highlights the dangers of maintaining setuid binaries with known vulnerabilities in modern computing environments. Proper mitigation requires not only applying the appropriate patches but also implementing comprehensive security monitoring to detect potential exploitation attempts and ensuring that setuid binaries are regularly audited for similar vulnerabilities. The vulnerability underscores the need for secure coding practices that prevent buffer overflows through proper bounds checking and memory management, particularly in applications that handle user input and operate with elevated privileges.