mtr: Stack-based buffer overflow — GLSA 200806-01

A stack-based buffer overflow was found in mtr, possibly resulting in the execution of arbitrary code.

Affected packages

net-analyzer/mtr on all architectures
Affected versions < 0.73-r1
Unaffected versions >= 0.73-r1

Background

mtr combines the functionality of the 'traceroute' and 'ping' programs in a single network diagnostic tool.

Description

Adam Zabrocki reported a boundary error within the split_redraw() function in the file split.c, possibly leading to a stack-based buffer overflow.

Impact

A remote attacker could use a specially crafted resolved hostname to execute arbitrary code with root privileges. However, it is required that the attacker controls the DNS server used by the victim, and that the "-p" (or "--split") command line option is used.

Workaround

There is no known workaround at this time.

Resolution

All mtr users should upgrade to the latest version:

 # emerge --sync
 # emerge --ask --oneshot --verbose ">=net-analyzer/mtr-0.73-r1"

References

Release date
June 03, 2008

Latest revision
June 03, 2008: 01

Severity
high

Exploitable
remote

Bugzilla entries