kernel security update (RHSA-2013-0621)

Original Release Date: April 22, 2013
Last Revised: August 3, 2016
Number: ASA-2013-209
Risk Level: Low
Advisory Version: 4.0
Advisory Status: Final

1. Overview:

The kernel packages contain the Linux kernel, the core of any Linux operating system.

A flaw was found in the way file permission checks for the "/dev/cpu/[x]/msr" files were performed in restricted root environments (for example, when using a capability-based security model). A local user with the ability to write to these files could use this flaw to escalate their privileges to kernel level, for example, by writing to the SYSENTER_EIP_MSR register. The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures project (cve.mitre.org) has assigned the name CVE-2013-0268 to this issue.

A race condition was found in the way the Linux kernel's ptrace implementation handled PTRACE_SETREGS requests when the debuggee was woken due to a SIGKILL signal instead of being stopped. A local, unprivileged user could use this flaw to escalate their privileges. The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures project (cve.mitre.org) has assigned the name CVE-2013-0871 to this issue.

More information about these vulnerabilities can be found in the security advisory issued by Red Hat:

2. Avaya System Products using a modified version of RHEL5 with affected packages installed:

Product: Affected Version(s): Risk Level: Actions:
Avaya Aura® Application Enablement Services 5.x, 6.1.x thru 6.3.1 Low For bundled and VMware offers, upgrade to 6.3.3 or later.
For System Platform offers, upgrade to 6.2 patch1, 6.3.3 or later.
Avaya Aura® Application Server 5300:
  • SIP Core
2.x, 3.0 including PB1 thru SP5 Low Upgrade to 3.0 SP6 or later.
Avaya IQ 4.x, 5.2 thru 5.2.5 Low Upgrade to 5.2.6 and install Patch 2 or later.
Avaya Aura® Communication Manager 6.x Low Install Kernel service pack 2.6.18-348Ak01.
Avaya Communication Server 1000:
  • CS1000E
  • CS1000M
  • CS1000E/CS1000M Signaling Server
6.x, 7.x Low See recommended actions and Mitigating Factors table below. This advisory will not be addressed as no further releases are planned.
Avaya Aura® Conferencing 7.0 thru 7.2 SP2 Low Upgrade to 7.2 SP3 or later.
Avaya Aura® Conferencing Standard Edition 6.x Low See recommended actions and Mitigating Factors table below. This advisory will not be addressed as no further releases are planned. It is recommended that customers migrate to one of Avaya's conferencing solutions including Aura® Conferencing 8.0 or later.
Avaya IP Office Application Server 8.x Low Upgrade to 9.0 or later.
Avaya Aura® Messaging 6.0 thru 6.3.2 SP2 Low Upgrade to 6.3.2 SP2 Patch2 or later.
Avaya one-X® Client Enablement Services 6.1.x Low Upgrade to 6.2 or later.
Avaya Aura® Presence Services 6.x Low Upgrade to Aura Presence Services 7.0 or later. Further information about this version, as well as the overall Aura 7.0 release, is available on support.avaya.com.
Avaya Proactive Contact 5.0 thru 5.1 Low Upgrade to 5.1.1 or later.
Avaya Aura® Session Manager 1.x, 5.x, 6.0 thru 6.2.3 Low Upgrade to 6.3 or later.
Avaya Aura® System Manager 5.x, 6.0 thru 6.3.2 Low Upgrade to 6.3.3 or later.
Avaya Aura® System Platform 1.x, 6.0 thru 6.3 Low Upgrade to 6.3.1 or later.
Avaya Aura® Communication Manager Utility Services 6.0 thru 6.3 Low For 6.0, 6.1, upgrade to 6.2 and install 6.2.10.0.15 or later.
For 6.2, install 6.2.10.0.15 or later.
For 6.3, install 6.3.1.0.20 or later.
Avaya Voice Portal 5.x Low See recommended actions and Mitigating Factors table below. This advisory will not be addressed as there will be no further releases. It is recommended to upgrade to Avaya Aura® Experience Portal.
Avaya Meeting Exchange 6.2 thru 6.2 SP2 Low Upgrade to 6.2 SP3 or later.

Recommended Actions for System Products:
Avaya strongly recommends that customers follow networking and security best practices by implementing firewalls, ACLs, physical security or other appropriate access restrictions. Though Avaya believes such restrictions should always be in place, risk to Avaya products and the surrounding network from this potential vulnerability may be mitigated by ensuring these practices are implemented until such time as an Avaya provided product update or the recommended Avaya action is applied. Further restrictions as deemed necessary based on the customer's security policies may be required during this interim period, but customers should not modify the System Product operating system or application unless the change is approved by Avaya. Making changes that are not approved may void the Avaya product service contract.

Mitigating Factors:

When determining risk, Avaya takes into account many factors as outlined by Avaya's Security Vulnerability Classification Policy. The following table describes factors that mitigate the risk of specific vulnerabilities for affected Avaya products:

Vulnerability Mitigating Factors
CVE-2013-0268
This is a Low risk because only privileged users are allowed to write to /dev directory and an exploit by a prvileged user would not provide any additional capabilities.
CVE-2013-0871
This is rated Low risk because debugging capabilities are limited to administrative users only, and an exploit by an administrative user would not provide any additional capabilities.

3. Avaya Software-Only Products:

Avaya software-only products operate on general-purpose operating systems. Occasionally vulnerabilities may be discovered in the underlying operating system or applications that come with the operating system. These vulnerabilities often do not impact the software-only product directly but may threaten the integrity of the underlying platform.

In the case of this advisory Avaya software-only products are not affected by the vulnerability directly but the underlying Linux platform may be. Customers should determine on which Linux operating system the product was installed and then follow that vendor's guidance.

Product: Actions:
Avaya Aura® Application Enablement Services 4.x/5.x Depending on the Operating System provided by customers, the affected package may be installed on the underlying Operating System supporting the AES application.
CVLAN Depending on the Operating System provided by customers, the affected package may be installed on the underlying Operating System supporting the CVLAN application.
Avaya Aura® Experience Portal Depending on the Operating System provided by customers, the affected package may be installed on the underlying Operating System supporting the EP application.
Avaya Integrated Management Suite (IMS) Depending on the Operating System provided by customers, the affected package may be installed on the underlying Operating System supporting the IMS application.
Avaya Aura® Presence Services Depending on the Operating System provided by customers, the affected package may be installed on the underlying Operating System supporting the PS application.
Avaya Secure Access Link Gateway Depending on the Operating System provided by customers, the affected package may be installed on the underlying Operating System supporting the SAL Gateway application.
Avaya Aura® System Manager 1.0 Depending on the Operating System provided by customers, the affected package may be installed on the underlying Operating System supporting the SMGR application.
Avaya Voice Portal Depending on the Operating System provided by customers, the affected package may be installed on the underlying Operating System supporting the VP application.

Recommended Actions for Software-Only Products:
In the event that the affected package is installed, Avaya recommends that customers follow recommended actions supplied by Red Hat regarding their Enterprise Linux.

4. Additional Information:

Additional information may also be available via the Avaya support website and through your Avaya account representative. Please contact your Avaya product support representative, or dial 1-800-242-2121, with any questions.

5. Disclaimer:

ALL INFORMATION IS BELIEVED TO BE CORRECT AT THE TIME OF PUBLICATION AND IS PROVIDED "AS IS". AVAYA INC., ON BEHALF ITSELF AND ITS SUBSIDIARIES AND AFFILIATES (HEREINAFTER COLLECTIVELY REFERRED TO AS "AVAYA"), DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND FURTHERMORE, AVAYA MAKES NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES THAT THE STEPS RECOMMENDED WILL ELIMINATE SECURITY OR VIRUS THREATS TO CUSTOMERS' SYSTEMS. IN NO EVENT SHALL AVAYA BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE INFORMATION OR RECOMMENDED ACTIONS PROVIDED HEREIN, INCLUDING DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, STATUTORY, CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, LOSS OF BUSINESS PROFITS OR SPECIAL DAMAGES, EVEN IF AVAYA HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

THE INFORMATION PROVIDED HERE DOES NOT AFFECT THE SUPPORT AGREEMENTS IN PLACE FOR AVAYA PRODUCTS. SUPPORT FOR AVAYA PRODUCTS CONTINUES TO BE EXECUTED AS PER EXISTING AGREEMENTS WITH AVAYA.

6. Revision History:

V 1.0 - April 22, 2013 - Initial Statement issued.
V 2.0 - June 12, 2015 - Updated affected versions and actions for AES, AS5300, CM, Conferencing, Messaging, One-X CES, Proactive Contact, SM, SMGR, SP, US and actions for CS1K, Conferencing SE and VP.
V 3.0 - October 20, 2015 - Updated affected versions and actions for IQ and actions for PS.
V 4.0 - August 3, 2016 - Updated affected version and actions for MX, and advisory status to Final.

Send information regarding any discovered security problems with Avaya products to either the contact noted in the product's documentation or securityalerts@avaya.com.

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