CVE-2018-5738: Some versions of BIND can improperly permit recursive query service to unauthorized clients
Change #4777 (introduced in October 2017) introduced an unforeseen issue in releases which were issued after that date, affecting which clients are permitted to make recursive queries to a BIND nameserver. The intended (and documented) behavior is that if an operator has not specified a value for the "allow-recursion" setting, it SHOULD default to one of the following: none, if "recursion no;" is set in named.conf; a value inherited from the "allow-query-cache" or "allow-query" settings IF "recursion yes;" (the default for that setting) AND match lists are explicitly set for "allow-query-cache" or "allow-query" (see the BIND9 Administrative Reference Manual section 6.2 for more details); or the intended default of "allow-recursion {localhost; localnets;};" if "recursion yes;" is in effect and no values are explicitly set for "allow-query-cache" or "allow-query". However, because of the regression introduced by change #4777, it is possible when "recursion yes;" is in effect and no match list values are provided for "allow-query-cache" or "allow-query" for the setting of "allow-recursion" to inherit a setting of all hosts from the "allow-query" setting default, improperly permitting recursion to all clients. Affects BIND 9.9.12, 9.10.7, 9.11.3, 9.12.0->9.12.1-P2, the development release 9.13.0, and also releases 9.9.12-S1, 9.10.7-S1, 9.11.3-S1, and 9.11.3-S2 from BIND 9 Supported Preview Edition.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is the severity of CVE-2018-5738?
CVE-2018-5738 has a moderate severity rating, as it impacts recursive query processing in BIND nameservers.
How do I fix CVE-2018-5738?
To fix CVE-2018-5738, update your BIND installation to a version that includes the security patch.
Which versions of BIND are affected by CVE-2018-5738?
CVE-2018-5738 affects BIND versions released after October 2017, including 9.9.12, 9.10.7, 9.11.x, and 9.12.x.
Is CVE-2018-5738 related to recursive queries in BIND?
Yes, CVE-2018-5738 specifically affects how recursive queries are handled by BIND nameservers.
What should administrators do regarding CVE-2018-5738?
Administrators should review their BIND configurations and ensure they are using supported versions with the necessary updates to mitigate CVE-2018-5738.