Executive brief
A vulnerability exists in tcpdump, a widely used tool for monitoring and analyzing network traffic. By sending specially crafted network packets, an attacker could cause the tool to crash or potentially execute unauthorized code on the system running the analysis. This could lead to a disruption of network monitoring operations or a full system compromise.
Technical details
A buffer overflow vulnerability exists in the TFTP (Trivial File Transfer Protocol) parser within tcpdump versions prior to 4.9.0. The flaw is located in the tftp_print() function in print-tftp.c and is triggered when the tool attempts to parse malformed TFTP packets. An unauthenticated remote attacker can exploit this by sending specially crafted packets to a network segment where tcpdump is performing live capture, or by providing a malicious pcap file for offline analysis. Successful exploitation can lead to a denial-of-service (application crash) or arbitrary code execution with the privileges of the user running tcpdump. The issue is resolved in version 4.9.0.
Affected products
- tcpdump tcpdump before 4.9.0
Timeline
- 2017-01-26: advisory: Debian security release announcement for version 4.9.0-1
- 2017-01-27: disclosed: NVD publication date
- 2017-01-29: patched: Debian Security Advisory DSA-3775-1 issued
- 2017-02-21: advisory: Gentoo Security Advisory GLSA 201702-30 issued