php53 and php security update (RHSA-2011-1423)

Original Release Date: December 20, 2011
Last Revised: August 2, 2012
Number: ASA-2011-380
Risk Level: Low
Advisory Version: 2.0
Advisory Status: Final

1. Overview:

PHP is an HTML-embedded scripting language commonly used with the Apache HTTP Server.

A signedness issue was found in the way the PHP crypt() function handled 8-bit characters in passwords when using Blowfish hashing. Up to three characters immediately preceding a non-ASCII character (one with the high bit set) had no effect on the hash result, thus shortening the effective password length. This made brute-force guessing more efficient as several different passwords were hashed to the same value. The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures project (cve.mitre.org) has assigned the name CVE-2011-2483 to this issue.

An insufficient input validation flaw, leading to a buffer over-read, was found in the PHP exif extension. A specially-crafted image file could cause the PHP interpreter to crash when a PHP script tries to extract Exchangeable image file format (Exif) metadata from the image file. The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures project (cve.mitre.org) has assigned the name CVE-2011-0708 to this issue.

An integer overflow flaw was found in the PHP calendar extension. A remote attacker able to make a PHP script call SdnToJulian() with a large value could cause the PHP interpreter to crash. The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures project (cve.mitre.org) has assigned the name CVE-2011-1466 to this issue.

Multiple memory leak flaws were found in the PHP OpenSSL extension. A remote attacker able to make a PHP script use openssl_encrypt() or openssl_decrypt() repeatedly could cause the PHP interpreter to use an excessive amount of memory. The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures project (cve.mitre.org) has assigned the name CVE-2011-1468 to this issue.

A use-after-free flaw was found in the PHP substr_replace() function. If a PHP script used the same variable as multiple function arguments, a remote attacker could possibly use this to crash the PHP interpreter or, possibly, execute arbitrary code. The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures project (cve.mitre.org) has assigned the name CVE-2011-1148 to this issue.

A bug in the PHP Streams component caused the PHP interpreter to crash if an FTP wrapper connection was made through an HTTP proxy. A remote attacker could possibly trigger this issue if a PHP script accepted an untrusted URL to connect to. The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures project (cve.mitre.org) has assigned the name CVE-2011-1469 to this issue.

An integer signedness issue was found in the PHP zip extension. An attacker could use a specially-crafted ZIP archive to cause the PHP interpreter to use an excessive amount of CPU time until the script execution time limit is reached. The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures project (cve.mitre.org) has assigned the name CVE-2011-1471 to this issue.

A stack-based buffer overflow flaw was found in the way the PHP socket extension handled long AF_UNIX socket addresses. An attacker able to make a PHP script connect to a long AF_UNIX socket address could use this flaw to crash the PHP interpreter. The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures project (cve.mitre.org) has assigned the name CVE-2011-1938 to this issue.

An off-by-one flaw was found in PHP. If an attacker uploaded a file with a specially-crafted file name it could cause a PHP script to attempt to write a file to the root (/) directory. By default, PHP runs as the "apache" user, preventing it from writing to the root directory. The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures project (cve.mitre.org) has assigned the name CVE-2011-2202 to this issue.

More information about these vulnerabilities can be found in the security advisory issued by Red Hat:

2. Avaya System Products using a modified version of RHEL with affected components/packages installed:
Product: Affected Version(s): Risk Level: Actions:
Avaya Aura® Experience Portal 6.0 Low Upgrade to Avaya Enterprise Linux for Experience Portal 6.0 SP1 and Experience Portal 6.0 SP1 or later.

Recommended Actions for System Products:
Avaya strongly recommends that customers follow networking and security best practices by implementing firewalls, ACLs, physical security or other appropriate access restrictions. Though Avaya believes such restrictions should always be in place, risk to Avaya products and the surrounding network from this potential vulnerability may be mitigated by ensuring these practices are implemented until such time as an Avaya provided product update or the recommended Avaya action is applied. Further restrictions as deemed necessary based on the customer's security policies may be required during this interim period, but customers should not modify the System Product operating system or application unless the change is approved by Avaya. Making changes that are not approved may void the Avaya product service contract.

Mitigating Factors:

When determining risk, Avaya takes into account many factors as outlined by Avaya's Security Vulnerability Classification Policy. The following table describes factors that mitigate the risk of specific vulnerabilities for affected Avaya products:

Vulnerability Mitigating Factors
CVE-2011-0708
CVE-2011-1148
CVE-2011-1466
CVE-2011-1468
CVE-2011-1469
CVE-2011-1471
CVE-2011-1938
CVE-2011-2202
CVE-2011-2483
The risk is Low because no critical system processes or applications would be affected.

3. Avaya Software-Only Products:

Avaya software-only products operate on general-purpose operating systems. Occasionally vulnerabilities may be discovered in the underlying operating system or applications that come with the operating system. These vulnerabilities often do not impact the software-only product directly but may threaten the integrity of the underlying platform.

In the case of this advisory Avaya software-only products are not affected by the vulnerability directly but the underlying Linux platform may be. Customers should determine on which Linux operating system the product was installed and then follow that vendor's guidance.

Product: Actions:
Avaya Aura® Application Enablement Services 4.x/5.x Depending on the Operating System provided by customers, the affected package may be installed on the underlying Operating System supporting the AES application.
CVLAN Depending on the Operating System provided by customers, the affected package may be installed on the underlying Operating System supporting the CVLAN application.
Avaya Aura® Experience Portal Depending on the Operating System provided by customers, the affected package may be installed on the underlying Operating System supporting the EP application.
Avaya Integrated Management Suite (IMS) Depending on the Operating System provided by customers, the affected package may be installed on the underlying Operating System supporting the IMS application.
Avaya Aura® Presence Services Depending on the Operating System provided by customers, the affected package may be installed on the underlying Operating System supporting the PS application.
Avaya Aura® System Manager 1.0 Depending on the Operating System provided by customers, the affected package may be installed on the underlying Operating System supporting the SMGR application.
Avaya Voice Portal Depending on the Operating System provided by customers, the affected package may be installed on the underlying Operating System supporting the VP application.

Recommended Actions for Software-Only Products:
In the event that the affected package is installed, Avaya recommends that customers follow recommended actions supplied by Red Hat regarding their Enterprise Linux.

4. Additional Information:

Additional information may also be available via the Avaya support website and through your Avaya account representative. Please contact your Avaya product support representative, or dial 1-800-242-2121, with any questions.

5. Disclaimer:

ALL INFORMATION IS BELIEVED TO BE CORRECT AT THE TIME OF PUBLICATION AND IS PROVIDED "AS IS". AVAYA INC., ON BEHALF ITSELF AND ITS SUBSIDIARIES AND AFFILIATES (HEREINAFTER COLLECTIVELY REFERRED TO AS "AVAYA"), DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND FURTHERMORE, AVAYA MAKES NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES THAT THE STEPS RECOMMENDED WILL ELIMINATE SECURITY OR VIRUS THREATS TO CUSTOMERS' SYSTEMS. IN NO EVENT SHALL AVAYA BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE INFORMATION OR RECOMMENDED ACTIONS PROVIDED HEREIN, INCLUDING DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, STATUTORY, CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, LOSS OF BUSINESS PROFITS OR SPECIAL DAMAGES, EVEN IF AVAYA HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

THE INFORMATION PROVIDED HERE DOES NOT AFFECT THE SUPPORT AGREEMENTS IN PLACE FOR AVAYA PRODUCTS. SUPPORT FOR AVAYA PRODUCTS CONTINUES TO BE EXECUTED AS PER EXISTING AGREEMENTS WITH AVAYA.

6. Revision History:

V 1.0 - December 20, 2011 - Initial Statement issued.
V 2.0 - August 2, 2012 - Updated EP affected versions and actions, and changed status to Final.

Send information regarding any discovered security problems with Avaya products to either the contact noted in the product's documentation or securityalerts@avaya.com.

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