CVE-2008-2359: High severity red hat fedora 8 vulnerability
It was discovered that consolehelper configuration files (/etc/security/console.apps/system-config-network) as shipped in Fedora 8 system-config-network packages allowed any local console user to start system-config-network configuration program with root privileges by providing only user password, not administrator password. This allows any user with local console access to change network configuration of the host.
Configuration file did not include USER=root directive and tried to include file config-util, which does not exist on Fedora 8 and is only provided by usermode package in Fedora 9. Without USER= specification, consolehelper prompted user for user password instead of intended root password.
Other sources
The default configuration of consolehelper in system-config-network before 1.5.10-1 on Fedora 8 lacks the USER=root directive, which allows local users of the workstation console to gain privileges and change the network configuration.
— MITRE
Affected Software
Event History
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the severity of CVE-2008-2359?
CVE-2008-2359 is classified as a high severity vulnerability due to its potential to allow local users to gain root privileges.
How do I fix CVE-2008-2359?
To mitigate CVE-2008-2359, update the system-config-network package to a version that addresses this vulnerability.
Which systems are affected by CVE-2008-2359?
CVE-2008-2359 affects multiple versions of the system-config-network packages on Red Hat Fedora 8.
Can local users exploit CVE-2008-2359?
Yes, local console users can exploit CVE-2008-2359 to run the system-config-network program with root privileges.
Is CVE-2008-2359 related to consolehelper?
Yes, CVE-2008-2359 is related to the configuration files of consolehelper that allow privilege escalation.