krb5 security and bug fix update (RHSA-2014-1245)

Original Release Date: October 22, 2014
Last Revised: July 25, 2016
Number: ASA-2014-417
Risk Level: Low
Advisory Version: 5.0
Advisory Status: Final

1. Overview:

Kerberos is an authentication system which allows clients and services to authenticate to each other with the help of a trusted third party, a Kerberos Key Distribution Center (KDC).

It was found that if a KDC served multiple realms, certain requests could cause the setup_server_realm() function to dereference a NULL pointer. A remote, unauthenticated attacker could use this flaw to crash the KDC using a specially crafted request. The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures project (cve.mitre.org) has assigned the names CVE-2013-1418 and CVE-2013-6800 to these issues.

A NULL pointer dereference flaw was found in the MIT Kerberos SPNEGO acceptor for continuation tokens. A remote, unauthenticated attacker could use this flaw to crash a GSSAPI-enabled server application. The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures project (cve.mitre.org) has assigned the name CVE-2014-4344 to this issue.

A buffer over-read flaw was found in the way MIT Kerberos handled certain requests. A man-in-the-middle attacker with a valid Kerberos ticket who is able to inject packets into a client or server application's GSSAPI session could use this flaw to crash the application. The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures project (cve.mitre.org) has assigned the name CVE-2014-4341 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 thru 6.3.3 Low For 6.3.2 and earlier, upgrade to 6.3.3 and install Linux Security Update patch 1.
For 6.3.3, install Linux Security Update patch 1.
Avaya Aura® Application Server 5300:
  • SIP Core
2.x, 3.x None See Mitigating Factors table below.
Avaya IQ 5.x specifically prior to 5.2.6 Low Upgrade to 5.2.6 or later.
Avaya Aura® Communication Manager 6.x None See Mitigating Factors table below.
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.x None See Mitigating Factors table below.
Avaya Aura® Conferencing Standard Edition 6.x None See Mitigating Factors table below.
Avaya IP Office Application Server 8.x None See Mitigating Factors table below.
Avaya Meeting Exchange 6.x None See Mitigating Factors table below.
Avaya Message Networking 6.3 including Patch 1 and Patch 2 Low Install 6.3 Patch 3 or later.
Avaya Aura® Messaging 6.x None See Mitigating Factors table below.
Avaya one-X® Client Enablement Services 6.1 thru 6.1.SP2 Low Upgrade to 6.1 SP3 only the krb5-libs package is installed.
Avaya Aura® Presence Services 6.1, 6.1.1 Low Upgrade to 6.1.2 or later, only the krb5-libs package is installed.
Avaya Proactive Contact 5.x specifically prior to 5.1.2 Low Upgrade to 5.1.2 or later.
Avaya Aura® Session Manager 5.x, 6.0 thru 6.2.x None See Mitigating Factors table below.
Avaya Aura® System Manager 5.x, 6.0 thru 6.3.10 Low Upgrade to 6.3.11 or later.
Avaya Aura® System Platform 1.x, 6.x None See Mitigating Factors table below.
Avaya Aura® Communication Manager Utility Services 6.x None See Mitigating Factors table below.

Recommended Actions for System Products:
Avaya strongly recommends following 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 the System Product operating system or application should not be modified 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-2014-4341
This is a Low for Application Enablement Services, Communication Server 1000, IQ, Message Networking, one-X CES, Presence Services, Proactive Contact and System Manager because the kerberos is not used or configured by default.
The risk is None for all other products as only the krb5-libs and/or krb5-devel packages are installed by default.
CVE-2013-1418
CVE-2013-6800
CVE-2014-4344
The risk is None for Application Enablement Services, Communication Server 1000, IQ, Message Networking, one-X CES, Presence Services, Proactive Contact and System Manager because krb5-server is not installed.
The risk is None for all other products as only the krb5-libs and/or krb5-devel packages are installed by default.

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 Depending on the Operating System installed, the affected package may be installed on the underlying Operating System supporting the AES application.
Avaya IQ Depending on the Operating System installed, the affected package may be installed on the underlying Operating System supporting the Avaya IQ application.
CVLAN Depending on the Operating System installed, the affected package may be installed on the underlying Operating System supporting the CVLAN application.
Avaya Aura® Experience Portal Depending on the Operating System installed, 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 installed, the affected package may be installed on the underlying Operating System supporting the IMS application.
Avaya Aura® Presence Services Depending on the Operating System installed, the affected package may be installed on the underlying Operating System supporting the PS application.

Recommended Actions for Software-Only Products:
In the event that the affected package is installed, Avaya recommends following 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 - October 22, 2014 - Initial Statement issued.
V 2.0 - February 27, 2015 - Updated SMGR affected versions and actions.
V 3.0 - March 10, 2015 - Updated AES affected versions and actions.
V 4.0 - June 11, 2015 - Updated MN affected versions and actions.
V 5.0 - July 25, 2016 - Updated Avaya IQ and Proactive Contact affected versions and actions, and advisory status to Final.

Avaya customers or Business Partners should report any security issues found with Avaya products via the standard support process.
Independent security researchers can contact Avaya at securityalerts@avaya.com.

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