Important: tomcat6 security update

Synopsis

Important: tomcat6 security update

Type/Severity

Security Advisory: Important

Topic

Updated tomcat6 packages that fix multiple security issues are now
available for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.

The Red Hat Security Response Team has rated this update as having
important security impact. Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) base
scores, which give detailed severity ratings, are available for each
vulnerability from the CVE links in the References section.

Description

Apache Tomcat is a servlet container.

It was found that when an application used FORM authentication, along with
another component that calls request.setUserPrincipal() before the call to
FormAuthenticator#authenticate() (such as the Single-Sign-On valve), it was
possible to bypass the security constraint checks in the FORM authenticator
by appending "/j_security_check" to the end of a URL. A remote attacker
with an authenticated session on an affected application could use this
flaw to circumvent authorization controls, and thereby access resources not
permitted by the roles associated with their authenticated session.
(CVE-2012-3546)

A flaw was found in the way Tomcat handled sendfile operations when using
the HTTP NIO (Non-Blocking I/O) connector and HTTPS. A remote attacker
could use this flaw to cause a denial of service (infinite loop). The HTTP
blocking IO (BIO) connector, which is not vulnerable to this issue, is used
by default in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6. (CVE-2012-4534)

Multiple weaknesses were found in the Tomcat DIGEST authentication
implementation, effectively reducing the security normally provided by
DIGEST authentication. A remote attacker could use these flaws to perform
replay attacks in some circumstances. (CVE-2012-5885, CVE-2012-5886,
CVE-2012-5887)

Users of Tomcat should upgrade to these updated packages, which correct
these issues. Tomcat must be restarted for this update to take effect.

Solution

Before applying this update, make sure all previously-released errata
relevant to your system have been applied.

This update is available via the Red Hat Network. Details on how to
use the Red Hat Network to apply this update are available at
https://access.redhat.com/knowledge/articles/11258

Affected Products

  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server 6 x86_64
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server 6 i386
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server - Extended Update Support 6.4 x86_64
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server - Extended Update Support 6.4 i386
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation 6 x86_64
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop 6 x86_64
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop 6 i386
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux for IBM z Systems 6 s390x
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux for Power, big endian 6 ppc64
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux for Power, big endian - Extended Update Support 6.4 ppc64
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux for Scientific Computing 6 x86_64
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server from RHUI 6 x86_64
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server from RHUI 6 i386
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server - Extended Update Support from RHUI 6.4 x86_64
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server - Extended Update Support from RHUI 6.4 i386
  • Red Hat Gluster Storage Server for On-premise 2.1 x86_64
  • Red Hat Storage for Public Cloud (via RHUI) 2.1 x86_64
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server - AUS 6.4 x86_64
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation 6 i386
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux for IBM z Systems - Extended Update Support 6.4 s390x

Fixes

  • BZ - 873664 - CVE-2012-5885 CVE-2012-5886 CVE-2012-5887 tomcat: three DIGEST authentication implementation issues
  • BZ - 883634 - CVE-2012-3546 Tomcat/JBoss Web: Bypass of security constraints
  • BZ - 883637 - CVE-2012-4534 Tomcat - Denial Of Service when using NIO+SSL+sendfile

CVEs

References