CWE
20
Advisory Published

RHSA-2009:0408: Important: krb5 security update

First published: Tue Apr 07 2009(Updated: )

Kerberos is a network authentication system which allows clients and<br>servers to authenticate to each other using symmetric encryption and a<br>trusted third party, the Key Distribution Center (KDC). The Generic<br>Security Service Application Program Interface (GSS-API) definition<br>provides security services to callers (protocols) in a generic fashion. The<br>Simple and Protected GSS-API Negotiation (SPNEGO) mechanism is used by<br>GSS-API peers to choose from a common set of security mechanisms.<br>An input validation flaw was found in the ASN.1 (Abstract Syntax Notation<br>One) decoder used by MIT Kerberos. A remote attacker could use this flaw to<br>crash a network service using the MIT Kerberos library, such as kadmind or<br>krb5kdc, by causing it to dereference or free an uninitialized pointer.<br>(CVE-2009-0846)<br>Multiple input validation flaws were found in the MIT Kerberos GSS-API<br>library's implementation of the SPNEGO mechanism. A remote attacker could<br>use these flaws to crash any network service utilizing the MIT Kerberos<br>GSS-API library to authenticate users or, possibly, leak portions of the<br>service's memory. (CVE-2009-0844, CVE-2009-0845)<br>All krb5 users should upgrade to these updated packages, which contain<br>backported patches to correct these issues. All running services using the<br>MIT Kerberos libraries must be restarted for the update to take effect.

Affected SoftwareAffected VersionHow to fix
redhat/krb5<1.6.1-31.el5_3.3
1.6.1-31.el5_3.3
redhat/krb5-devel<1.6.1-31.el5_3.3
1.6.1-31.el5_3.3
redhat/krb5-devel<1.6.1-31.el5_3.3
1.6.1-31.el5_3.3
redhat/krb5-libs<1.6.1-31.el5_3.3
1.6.1-31.el5_3.3
redhat/krb5-libs<1.6.1-31.el5_3.3
1.6.1-31.el5_3.3
redhat/krb5-server<1.6.1-31.el5_3.3
1.6.1-31.el5_3.3
redhat/krb5-workstation<1.6.1-31.el5_3.3
1.6.1-31.el5_3.3
redhat/krb5-server<1.6.1-31.el5_3.3
1.6.1-31.el5_3.3
redhat/krb5-workstation<1.6.1-31.el5_3.3
1.6.1-31.el5_3.3

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Frequently Asked Questions

  • What is the severity of RHSA-2009:0408?

    The severity of RHSA-2009:0408 is considered important due to potential authentication vulnerabilities that could be exploited.

  • How do I fix RHSA-2009:0408?

    To fix RHSA-2009:0408, update the affected packages to version 1.6.1-31.el5_3.3 or later as specified in the advisory.

  • Which packages are affected by RHSA-2009:0408?

    The affected packages under RHSA-2009:0408 include krb5, krb5-devel, krb5-libs, krb5-server, and krb5-workstation.

  • What systems does RHSA-2009:0408 apply to?

    RHSA-2009:0408 applies to systems running Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 with the specified versions of the Kerberos packages.

  • Is a reboot required after applying the fix for RHSA-2009:0408?

    A reboot is not required, but it is advisable to restart any services using the Kerberos libraries to ensure they utilize the updated packages.

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