Issued:
2004-12-02
Updated:
2004-12-02

RHSA-2004:549 - kernel security update

Synopsis

kernel security update

Type/Severity

Security Advisory Important

Topic

Updated kernel packages that fix several security issues in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3 are now available.

Description

The Linux kernel handles the basic functions of the operating system.

This update includes fixes for several security issues:

A missing serialization flaw in unix_dgram_recvmsg was discovered that affects kernels prior to 2.4.28. A local user could potentially make use of a race condition in order to gain privileges. The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures project (cve.mitre.org) has assigned the name CAN-2004-1068 to this issue.

Paul Starzetz of iSEC discovered various flaws in the ELF binary loader affecting kernels prior to 2.4.28. A local user could use thse flaws to gain read access to executable-only binaries or possibly gain privileges. (CAN-2004-1070, CAN-2004-1071, CAN-2004-1072, CAN-2004-1073)

A flaw when setting up TSS limits was discovered that affects AMD AMD64 and Intel EM64T architecture kernels prior to 2.4.23. A local user could use this flaw to cause a denial of service (crash) or possibly gain privileges. (CAN-2004-0812)

An integer overflow flaw was discovered in the ubsec_keysetup function in the Broadcom 5820 cryptonet driver. On systems using this driver, a local user could cause a denial of service (crash) or possibly gain elevated privileges. (CAN-2004-0619)

Stefan Esser discovered various flaws including buffer overflows in the smbfs driver affecting kernels prior to 2.4.28. A local user may be able to cause a denial of service (crash) or possibly gain privileges. In order to exploit these flaws the user would require control of a connected Samba server. (CAN-2004-0883, CAN-2004-0949)

SGI discovered a bug in the elf loader that affects kernels prior to 2.4.25 which could be triggered by a malformed binary. On architectures other than x86, a local user could create a malicious binary which could cause a denial of service (crash). (CAN-2004-0136)

Conectiva discovered flaws in certain USB drivers affecting kernels prior to 2.4.27 which used the copy_to_user function on uninitialized structures. These flaws could allow local users to read small amounts of kernel memory. (CAN-2004-0685)

All Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3 users are advised to upgrade their kernels to the packages associated with their machine architectures and configurations as listed in this erratum.

Solution

Before applying this update, make sure that all previously-released errata relevant to your system have been applied. Use Red Hat Network to download and update your packages. To launch the Red Hat Update Agent, use the following command:

up2date

For information on how to install packages manually, refer to the following Web page for the System Administration or Customization guide specific to your system:

This content is not included.http://www.redhat.com/docs/manuals/enterprise/

Affected Products

ProductVersionArch
Red Hat Enterprise Linux for Power, big endian3ppc
Red Hat Enterprise Linux for IBM z Systems3s390x
Red Hat Enterprise Linux for IBM z Systems3s390
Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation3x86_64
Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation3ia64
Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation3i386
Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server3x86_64
Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server3ia64
Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server3i386
Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop3x86_64
Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop3i386

Updated Packages

  • kernel-2.4.21-20.0.1.EL.ia64.rpm
  • kernel-unsupported-2.4.21-20.0.1.EL.ia64.rpm
  • kernel-source-2.4.21-20.0.1.EL.ia64.rpm
  • kernel-doc-2.4.21-20.0.1.EL.ia64.rpm

Fixes

CVEs

References

(none)

Additional information