CVE-2014-1419 in acpi-support
Summary
by MITRE
Race condition in the power policy functions in policy-funcs in acpi-support before 0.142 allows local users to gain privileges via unspecified vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/20/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-1419 represents a critical race condition within the power policy functions of the acpi-support package version 0.142 and earlier. This flaw exists in the policy-funcs component of the Advanced Configuration and Power Interface support utilities, which are integral to managing power states and policies on Linux systems. The race condition occurs during the execution of power policy functions that handle system power management operations, creating a window of opportunity for malicious actors to exploit temporal inconsistencies in the code execution flow.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from improper synchronization mechanisms within the power policy functions that govern how the system handles power state transitions and policy enforcement. When multiple processes or threads attempt to access or modify power policy configurations simultaneously, the lack of proper locking mechanisms allows for unpredictable behavior where one operation may interfere with another. This race condition manifests in scenarios where local users can manipulate the timing of power policy operations to achieve privilege escalation. The vulnerability does not require specific user interaction beyond normal system usage, making it particularly dangerous as it can be exploited by any local user with access to the system.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability poses significant security implications for Linux systems that rely on acpi-support for power management functionality. The privilege escalation capability means that a local attacker could potentially elevate their privileges to root level access, gaining complete control over the affected system. This represents a serious compromise of system integrity and confidentiality, as the attacker could access sensitive data, modify system configurations, or establish persistent backdoors. The vulnerability affects systems running Linux distributions that utilize the affected version of acpi-support, particularly those with complex power management requirements where multiple processes might concurrently interact with power policy functions.
The exploitation of this race condition aligns with several ATT&CK techniques including privilege escalation through race conditions and abuse of system services. This vulnerability falls under CWE-362, which specifically addresses race conditions in software implementations where concurrent operations can lead to unpredictable behavior. The flaw demonstrates poor concurrency control in system-level software, where the absence of proper mutex locks or atomic operations creates opportunities for malicious interference. Organizations should prioritize immediate patching of affected systems to remediate this vulnerability, as the window of opportunity for exploitation exists during active power policy operations. Additionally, system administrators should monitor for unusual power management activities that might indicate exploitation attempts, and implement proper access controls to limit local user privileges where possible.
Mitigation strategies should include updating to acpi-support version 0.142 or later, which contains the necessary synchronization fixes to prevent the race condition. System administrators should also consider implementing additional security measures such as restricting access to power management interfaces and monitoring for anomalous system behavior. The vulnerability highlights the importance of proper concurrency control in system-level software components and demonstrates how seemingly minor implementation flaws can lead to significant security implications. Regular security audits of system utilities and kernel modules should be conducted to identify similar race conditions that could potentially be exploited by attackers. Organizations should also maintain updated threat intelligence regarding similar vulnerabilities in power management subsystems to ensure comprehensive protection against related attack vectors.