CVE-2005-3704 in Mac OS X
Summary
by MITRE
System log server in Mac OS X and OS X Server 10.4 through 10.4.3 allows remote attackers to spoof syslog messages in log files by injecting various control characters such as newline (NL).
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/14/2019
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2005-3704 represents a significant security flaw in the syslog implementation of Mac OS X versions 10.4 through 10.4.3, specifically affecting both standard Mac OS X installations and OS X Server deployments. This issue stems from inadequate input validation within the system log server component, which fails to properly sanitize incoming syslog messages before processing and storing them in log files. The flaw allows remote attackers to manipulate log data through the injection of control characters, particularly newline sequences, thereby enabling malicious actors to craft deceptive log entries that can obscure legitimate system activities or inject false information into audit trails.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs through the manipulation of syslog message formatting by attackers who can insert control characters such as newline characters into log entries. When the system log server processes these malformed messages, it fails to properly escape or filter the control characters, allowing the injected sequences to alter the structure of log entries. This enables attackers to insert additional log messages or modify existing entries in ways that can confuse system administrators during security monitoring and incident response activities. The vulnerability specifically targets the syslog daemon's handling of message boundaries and log formatting, creating opportunities for log forgery and data manipulation.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple log manipulation to potentially compromise the integrity of system audit trails and security monitoring capabilities. System administrators rely on accurate log data for security incident detection, forensic analysis, and compliance reporting, making this vulnerability particularly dangerous in enterprise environments where audit integrity is critical. Attackers could use this flaw to create false log entries that mask their actual activities, making it difficult to detect unauthorized access attempts, system compromises, or other malicious activities. The vulnerability also impacts the reliability of security information and event management systems that depend on clean, unmodified log data for threat detection and analysis.
This vulnerability aligns with CWE-174, which describes the weakness of "Failure to Sanitize Control Characters," and represents a classic case of inadequate input validation in system logging components. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to techniques involving log manipulation and evasion, specifically covering T1070.006 for "Indicator Removal on Host: File Deletion" and T1562.006 for "Impairing Security Tools: Network Sniffing" through the manipulation of log data that security tools depend upon for detection. The vulnerability also relates to T1562.001 for "Impairing Security Tools: Obfuscation" as attackers can obfuscate their activities by manipulating log entries. Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including patching to affected versions, implementing additional log validation mechanisms, and establishing monitoring for unusual log formatting patterns to detect potential exploitation attempts.
The remediation approach for this vulnerability requires immediate deployment of security patches provided by Apple for Mac OS X versions 10.4.4 and later, which address the input sanitization issues in the syslog implementation. System administrators should also implement log integrity monitoring solutions that can detect malformed control character sequences in log data, and consider implementing additional security controls such as log file access restrictions and centralized logging with integrity checking mechanisms. Organizations should review their existing security monitoring procedures to ensure that log manipulation attempts are detected and investigated promptly, as this vulnerability can significantly undermine the effectiveness of security operations and incident response capabilities.