CVE-2014-7271: High severity sddm (simple desktop display manager) vulnerability
It was reported that it's possible to login as "sddm" user without authentication:
This is since if sddm detects that user in the PamBackend, it has:
if (user == "sddm") service = "sddm-greeter"; else if (mapp->session()->path().isEmpty()) service = "sddm-check"; else if (mautologin) service = "sddm-autologin"; result = mpam->start(service, user);
and the sddm-greeter PAM config basically just has a pampermit. More info is available at [1]. Upstream patch is at [2].
[1]: https://bugzilla.suse.com/showbug.cgi?id=897788#c6 [2]: https://github.com/sddm/sddm/pull/279
Other sources
Simple Desktop Display Manager (SDDM) before 0.10.0 allows local users to log in as user "sddm" without authentication.
— MITRE
Affected Software
Remediation
Patch Available
Event History
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the severity of CVE-2014-7271?
CVE-2014-7271 has a high severity due to the potential for unauthorized login as the 'sddm' user without authentication.
How do I fix CVE-2014-7271?
To fix CVE-2014-7271, upgrade SDDM to a version newer than 0.10.0 where this vulnerability is patched.
Who is affected by CVE-2014-7271?
Users of SDDM versions less than 0.10.0 and Fedora versions 20 and 21 are affected by CVE-2014-7271.
What is the nature of CVE-2014-7271?
CVE-2014-7271 is a security flaw that allows login as the 'sddm' user without proper authentication.
Is there a workaround for CVE-2014-7271?
A temporary workaround for CVE-2014-7271 involves restricting access to the SDDM greeter service until a patch can be applied.