CVE-2018-16883 : Security Advisory and Response

CVE-2018-16883 was published on December 19, 2018, by Red Hat. It affects versions of sssd up to 2.0.0, with a vulnerability related to access restriction on the infopipe.

Understanding CVE-2018-16883

This CVE identifies a security flaw in sssd versions prior to 2.0.0 that could potentially lead to the disclosure of sensitive information to local attackers.

What is CVE-2018-16883?

Versions of sssd before 2.0.0 had a vulnerability where access to the infopipe was not effectively restricted based on the "allowed_uids" configuration parameter. This could result in accidental disclosure of sensitive data to attackers with local access.

The Impact of CVE-2018-16883

The vulnerability's impact is rated as low severity with a CVSS base score of 2.5. The confidentiality impact is low, and integrity impact is none. The attack complexity is high, but privileges required are low.

Technical Details of CVE-2018-16883

This section provides more in-depth technical details about the vulnerability.

Vulnerability Description

The flaw in sssd versions from 1.13.0 to before 2.0.0 allowed unauthorized access to the infopipe, potentially leading to the inadvertent disclosure of sensitive information stored in the user directory.

Affected Systems and Versions

Product: sssd
Vendor: [UNKNOWN]
Versions affected: 1.13.0 to 2.0.0

Exploitation Mechanism

Attack Vector: LOCAL Privileges Required: LOW User Interaction: NONE Scope: UNCHANGED

Mitigation and Prevention

To address CVE-2018-16883, follow these mitigation strategies:

Immediate Steps to Take

Upgrade sssd to version 2.0.0 or later.
Implement proper access controls and restrictions on sensitive directories.

Long-Term Security Practices

Regularly monitor and audit access to critical systems.
Train users on security best practices to prevent unauthorized access.

Patching and Updates

Apply patches and updates provided by the vendor to fix the vulnerability.