S-nail up to 14.8.15 root Helper randstr path traversal

CVSS Meta Temp Score
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CTI Interest Score
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7.0$0-$5k0.00

Summaryinfo

A vulnerability was found in S-nail up to 14.8.15. It has been classified as critical. Affected is an unknown function of the component root Helper. The manipulation of the argument randstr leads to path traversal. This vulnerability is traded as CVE-2017-5899. An attack has to be approached locally. Furthermore, there is an exploit available. Upgrading the affected component is recommended.

Detailsinfo

A vulnerability was found in S-nail up to 14.8.15. It has been rated as critical. This issue affects an unknown code block of the component root Helper. The manipulation of the argument randstr with an unknown input leads to a path traversal vulnerability. Using CWE to declare the problem leads to CWE-22. The product uses external input to construct a pathname that is intended to identify a file or directory that is located underneath a restricted parent directory, but the product does not properly neutralize special elements within the pathname that can cause the pathname to resolve to a location that is outside of the restricted directory. Impacted is confidentiality, integrity, and availability. The summary by CVE is:

Directory traversal vulnerability in the setuid root helper binary in S-nail (later S-mailx) before 14.8.16 allows local users to write to arbitrary files and consequently gain root privileges via a .. (dot dot) in the randstr argument.

The bug was discovered 01/27/2017. The weakness was shared 03/27/2017 by wapiflapi (oss-sec). It is possible to read the advisory at openwall.com. The identification of this vulnerability is CVE-2017-5899 since 02/07/2017. Attacking locally is a requirement. The requirement for exploitation is a simple authentication. Technical details as well as a public exploit are known. The attack technique deployed by this issue is T1006 according to MITRE ATT&CK.

A public exploit has been developed by bcoles. The exploit is available at github.com. It is declared as proof-of-concept. The vulnerability was handled as a non-public zero-day exploit for at least 59 days. During that time the estimated underground price was around $0-$5k.

Upgrading to version 14.8.16 eliminates this vulnerability.

The vulnerability is also documented in the databases at Exploit-DB (47172) and SecurityFocus (BID 96138†). Be aware that VulDB is the high quality source for vulnerability data.

Productinfo

Name

Version

CPE 2.3info

CPE 2.2info

CVSSv4info

VulDB Vector: 🔍
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

CVSSv3info

VulDB Meta Base Score: 7.4
VulDB Meta Temp Score: 7.0

VulDB Base Score: 7.8
VulDB Temp Score: 7.0
VulDB Vector: 🔍
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

NVD Base Score: 7.0
NVD Vector: 🔍

CVSSv2info

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VulDB Base Score: 🔍
VulDB Temp Score: 🔍
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

NVD Base Score: 🔍

Exploitinginfo

Class: Path traversal
CWE: CWE-22
CAPEC: 🔍
ATT&CK: 🔍

Physical: Partially
Local: Yes
Remote: No

Availability: 🔍
Access: Public
Status: Proof-of-Concept
Author: bcoles
Download: 🔍

EPSS Score: 🔍
EPSS Percentile: 🔍

Price Prediction: 🔍
Current Price Estimation: 🔍

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Exploit-DB: 🔍

Threat Intelligenceinfo

Interest: 🔍
Active Actors: 🔍
Active APT Groups: 🔍

Countermeasuresinfo

Recommended: Upgrade
Status: 🔍

0-Day Time: 🔍

Upgrade: S-nail 14.8.16

Timelineinfo

01/27/2017 🔍
02/07/2017 +11 days 🔍
02/07/2017 +0 days 🔍
03/27/2017 +48 days 🔍
03/27/2017 +0 days 🔍
03/28/2017 +1 days 🔍
06/22/2025 +3008 days 🔍

Sourcesinfo

Advisory: openwall.com
Researcher: wapiflapi
Status: Confirmed

CVE: CVE-2017-5899 (🔍)
GCVE (CVE): GCVE-0-2017-5899
GCVE (VulDB): GCVE-100-98999
SecurityFocus: 96138 - S-nail CVE-2017-5899 Local Privilege Escalation Vulnerability

scip Labs: https://www.scip.ch/en/?labs.20161013

Entryinfo

Created: 03/28/2017 22:05
Updated: 06/22/2025 12:54
Changes: 03/28/2017 22:05 (61), 07/26/2019 14:40 (4), 07/26/2019 14:41 (2), 07/13/2020 09:56 (1), 06/22/2025 12:54 (20)
Complete: 🔍
Committer: misc
Cache ID: 216::103

Be aware that VulDB is the high quality source for vulnerability data.

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