CVE-2006-2196 in pinball
Summary
by MITRE
Unspecified vulnerability in pinball 0.3.1 allows local users to gain privileges via unknown attack vectors that cause pinball to load plugins from an attacker-controlled directory while operating at raised privileges.
If you want to get best quality of vulnerability data, you may have to visit VulDB.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/21/2019
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2006-2196 affects the pinball 0.3.1 software and represents a critical privilege escalation flaw that exploits improper plugin loading mechanisms. This vulnerability exists within the software's plugin architecture where the application fails to properly validate or restrict the directories from which plugins can be loaded. The flaw becomes particularly dangerous when the pinball application executes with elevated privileges, creating a pathway for local attackers to manipulate the system through malicious plugin injection. The unspecified nature of the attack vectors suggests that multiple exploitation techniques may be possible, making the vulnerability particularly insidious as defenders cannot easily predict or mitigate all potential attack surfaces.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation and privilege separation mechanisms within the pinball application's plugin loading process. When the application operates with elevated privileges, it becomes susceptible to attacks that manipulate the plugin search paths or directly replace legitimate plugin files with malicious counterparts. This type of vulnerability aligns with CWE-276, which addresses improper privileges, and CWE-427, which covers uncontrolled search path. The flaw essentially creates a situation where the application's trust model is compromised, allowing an attacker to execute arbitrary code with the privileges of the elevated process. The vulnerability operates under the principle that the software assumes all plugins in its search paths are trustworthy, which represents a fundamental security flaw in the application's design.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability enables local attackers to escalate their privileges from standard user accounts to higher privilege levels, potentially gaining access to system resources, sensitive data, or administrative capabilities. The exploitation requires only local system access and does not necessitate network connectivity or complex attack infrastructure, making it particularly dangerous in environments where local access is common. The attack vector allows for persistent privilege escalation that could enable long-term system compromise, as the malicious plugins could remain undetected while providing continued elevated access to the attacker. This vulnerability directly maps to ATT&CK technique T1068, which covers privilege escalation through local exploits, and T1543, which addresses persistence through malicious plugins or extensions.
The mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should focus on implementing proper privilege separation and plugin validation mechanisms. System administrators should ensure that the pinball application runs with the minimum necessary privileges and that plugin directories are properly secured with appropriate access controls. The software should be configured to only load plugins from trusted, predefined directories and should implement strict validation of plugin integrity before execution. Additionally, regular updates and patches should be applied to address known vulnerabilities, and system monitoring should be implemented to detect unauthorized plugin modifications. Organizations should consider implementing application whitelisting policies to prevent execution of unauthorized plugin files, and the principle of least privilege should be enforced throughout the system to minimize the impact of such vulnerabilities. The vulnerability highlights the importance of secure plugin architectures and proper privilege management in preventing local privilege escalation attacks.