Executive brief
A security vulnerability exists in the Sun sdtcm_convert utility, a tool used for managing calendar data on older Sun Microsystems operating systems. A local user can exploit this flaw to bypass security controls and gain full administrative (root) access to the system. This could lead to a complete compromise of the server, including the theft of sensitive data or the disruption of critical services.
Technical details
A buffer overflow vulnerability exists in the sdtcm_convert utility within the OpenWindows environment on SunOS and Solaris systems. The flaw is triggered when the utility handles specially crafted input, leading to memory corruption. Because this utility often runs with elevated privileges, a local, unauthenticated attacker can exploit the overflow to execute arbitrary code with root-level permissions. The attack vector is local, requiring the attacker to have existing access to a shell on the target machine. Sun Microsystems released security bulletin 183 to address this issue.
Affected products
- Sun Microsystems Solaris 1.1, 1.1.1a, 1.1.2, 1.1.4, 1.2, 2.0, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5, 2.5.1
- Sun Microsystems SunOS 4.1.3, 4.1.4, 5.0, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.4, 5.5, 5.5.1
Timeline
- 1997-02-01: disclosed
- 1997-02-01: advisory: NVD Published Date