CVE-2018-5729: Null Pointer Dereference

Published Mar 1, 2018
·
Updated

A flaw was found in MIT krb5 1.6 or later, an authenticated kadmin user with permission to add principals to an LDAP Kerberos database can cause a null dereference in kadmind, or circumvent a DN container check, by supplying tagged data intended to be internal to the database module.

Reference: https://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=891869

Upstream patch: https://github.com/krb5/krb5/commit/e1caf6fb74981da62039846931ebdffed71309d1

Other sources

MIT krb5 1.6 or later allows an authenticated kadmin with permission to add principals to an LDAP Kerberos database to cause a denial of service (NULL pointer dereference) or bypass a DN container check by supplying tagged data that is internal to the database module.

MITRE

Affected Software

11 affected componentsFixes available
debian/krb5<=1.7dfsg~beta1-1, <=1.16-2
MIT Kerberos 5>=5-1.6
Fedoraproject Fedora=26
Fedoraproject Fedora=27
Debian Debian Linux=8.0
Debian Debian Linux=9.0
redhat Enterprise Linux Desktop=7.0
redhat Enterprise Linux Server=7.0
redhat Enterprise Linux Workstation=7.0
MIT Kerberos 5>=5-1.6<5-1.21.2
debian/krb5
1.18.3-6+deb11u51.18.3-6+deb11u71.20.1-2+deb12u41.20.1-2+deb12u21.21.3-51.22.1-2

Remediation

Recommended actions to resolve this vulnerability, in priority order.

  1. Upgrade

    Upgrade debian/krb5 to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 1.18.3-6+deb11u5Fixed in 1.18.3-6+deb11u7Fixed in 1.20.1-2+deb12u4Fixed in 1.20.1-2+deb12u2Fixed in 1.21.3-5Fixed in 1.22.1-2
  2. Upgrade

    Upgrade MIT krb5 to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 1.6 or laterPatch e1caf6fb74981da62039846931ebdffed71309d1

Event History

Mar 2, 2018
Data Sourced
via Red Hat·05:14 PM
DescriptionSeverityAffected Software
Mar 6, 2018
CVE Published
via MITRE·08:00 PM
Data Sourced
via MITRE·08:00 PM
Description
Data Sourced
via NVD·08:29 PM
RemedyDescriptionSeverityWeaknessAffected Software
Nov 15, 2025
Data Sourced
via Debian·08:32 AM
DescriptionAffected Software
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Frequently Asked Questions

1

What is the vulnerability ID for this vulnerability?

The vulnerability ID for this vulnerability is CVE-2018-5729.

2

What is the severity level of CVE-2018-5729?

CVE-2018-5729 has a severity level of 4.7 (high).

3

Which software versions are affected by CVE-2018-5729?

MIT krb5 1.6 or later versions are affected by CVE-2018-5729.

4

How can an attacker exploit CVE-2018-5729?

An authenticated kadmin with permission to add principals to an LDAP Kerberos database can cause a denial of service (NULL pointer dereference) or bypass a DN container check by supplying tagged data that is internal to the database module.

5

Are there any official references for CVE-2018-5729?

Yes, you can find official references for CVE-2018-5729 at the following links: http://www.securitytracker.com/id/1042071, https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHBA-2019:0327, https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2018:3071.

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