kernel security update
Security Advisory: Important
Updated kernel packages that fix several security issues are now available
for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4.
This update has been rated as having important security impact by the Red
Hat Security Response Team.
The Linux kernel handles the basic functions of the operating system.
This advisory includes fixes for several security issues:
iSEC Security Research discovered multiple vulnerabilities in the IGMP
functionality. These flaws could allow a local user to cause a denial of
service (crash) or potentially gain privileges. Where multicast
applications are being used on a system, these flaws may also allow remote
users to cause a denial of service. The Common Vulnerabilities and
Exposures project (cve.mitre.org) has assigned the name CAN-2004-1137 to
this issue.
iSEC Security Research discovered a flaw in the page fault handler code
that could lead to local users gaining elevated (root) privileges on
multiprocessor machines. (CAN-2005-0001)
iSEC Security Research discovered a VMA handling flaw in the uselib(2)
system call of the Linux kernel. A local user could make use of this
flaw to gain elevated (root) privileges. (CAN-2004-1235)
A flaw affecting the OUTS instruction on the AMD64 and Intel EM64T
architecture was discovered. A local user could use this flaw to write to
privileged IO ports. (CAN-2005-0204)
The Direct Rendering Manager (DRM) driver in Linux kernel 2.6 does not
properly check the DMA lock, which could allow remote attackers or local
users to cause a denial of service (X Server crash) or possibly modify the
video output. (CAN-2004-1056)
OGAWA Hirofumi discovered incorrect tables sizes being used in the
filesystem Native Language Support ASCII translation table. This could
lead to a denial of service (system crash). (CAN-2005-0177)
Michael Kerrisk discovered a flaw in the 2.6.9 kernel which allows users to
unlock arbitrary shared memory segments. This flaw could lead to
applications not behaving as expected. (CAN-2005-0176)
Improvements in the POSIX signal and tty standards compliance exposed
a race condition. This flaw can be triggered accidentally by threaded
applications or deliberately by a malicious user and can result in a
denial of service (crash) or in occasional cases give access to a small
random chunk of kernel memory. (CAN-2005-0178)
The PaX team discovered a flaw in mlockall introduced in the 2.6.9 kernel.
An unprivileged user could use this flaw to cause a denial of service
(CPU and memory consumption or crash). (CAN-2005-0179)
Brad Spengler discovered multiple flaws in sg_scsi_ioctl in the 2.6 kernel.
An unprivileged user may be able to use this flaw to cause a denial of
service (crash) or possibly other actions. (CAN-2005-0180)
Kirill Korotaev discovered a missing access check regression in the Red Hat
Enterprise Linux 4 kernel 4GB/4GB split patch. On systems using the
hugemem kernel, a local unprivileged user could use this flaw to cause a
denial of service (crash). (CAN-2005-0090)
A flaw in the Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 kernel 4GB/4GB split patch can
allow syscalls to read and write arbitrary kernel memory. On systems using
the hugemem kernel, a local unprivileged user could use this flaw to gain
privileges. (CAN-2005-0091)
An additional flaw in the Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 kernel 4GB/4GB split
patch was discovered. On x86 systems using the hugemem kernel, a local
unprivileged user may be able to use this flaw to cause a denial of service
(crash). (CAN-2005-0092)
All Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 users are advised to upgrade their
kernels to the packages associated with their machine architectures
and configurations as listed in this erratum.
Before applying this update, make sure that all previously-released
errata relevant to your system have been applied. Use Red Hat
Network to download and update your packages. To launch the Red Hat
Update Agent, use the following command:
up2date
For information on how to install packages manually, refer to the
following Web page for the System Administration or Customization
guide specific to your system:
http://www.redhat.com/docs/manuals/enterprise/
Vulmon