CVE-2004-0654 in Solaris
Summary
by MITRE
Unknown vulnerability in the Basic Security Module (BSM), when configured to audit either the Administrative (ad) or the System-Wide Administration (as) audit class in Solaris 7, 8, and 9, allows local users to cause a denial of service (kernel panic).
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/22/2025
The vulnerability described in CVE-2004-0654 represents a critical security flaw within the Basic Security Module (BSM) of Solaris operating systems versions 7, 8, and 9. This issue specifically manifests when the BSM is configured to audit either the Administrative (ad) or System-Wide Administration (as) audit classes, creating a pathway for local attackers to exploit kernel instability. The Basic Security Module serves as a fundamental component for audit and security logging within Solaris systems, making this vulnerability particularly concerning for enterprise environments that rely on comprehensive security monitoring capabilities.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from improper handling of audit events within the kernel space when processing administrative audit classes. When local users trigger specific sequences of administrative operations that fall under the ad or as audit classes, the BSM fails to properly validate or process these events, leading to kernel panic conditions. This occurs because the audit subsystem does not adequately sanitize input data or maintain proper state management during the auditing process, causing the kernel to crash and resulting in complete system denial of service. The vulnerability operates at the kernel level, making it particularly dangerous as it can be exploited by any local user with access to the system, regardless of their privilege level.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple service disruption to encompass complete system unreliability within Solaris environments. Organizations relying on Solaris 7, 8, and 9 systems for mission-critical operations face significant risk of unplanned downtime and potential data loss when this vulnerability is exploited. The kernel panic condition effectively renders affected systems unusable until manual reboot is performed, creating operational challenges for system administrators who must respond to unexpected outages. This vulnerability particularly affects enterprise environments where comprehensive audit logging is required for compliance purposes, as the very mechanism designed to provide security monitoring becomes a vector for system compromise. The exploitability of this issue is relatively straightforward, requiring only local access and knowledge of specific administrative operations that trigger the affected audit classes.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2004-0654 should prioritize immediate system patching through official Solaris updates, as this vulnerability was addressed in subsequent security releases. Organizations should also consider temporarily disabling the affected audit classes (ad and as) in BSM configurations until proper patches are deployed, though this approach reduces the system's security monitoring capabilities. System administrators should implement monitoring solutions to detect potential exploitation attempts and establish incident response procedures specifically addressing kernel panic events. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-119 which addresses memory safety issues in kernel space, and represents a classic example of improper input validation leading to system instability. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to privilege escalation and denial of service tactics, as local users can leverage it to gain unauthorized system control through kernel-level exploitation, making it a significant concern for security operations centers monitoring for system integrity violations.