CVE-2006-1542

Stack-based buffer overflow in Python < 2.4.2

• CVSS 3.7
• CWE-121: Stack-based Buffer Overflow
• Memory Corruption
• Local

Stack-based buffer overflow in Python 2.4.2 and earlier, running on Linux 2.6.12.5 under gcc 4.0.3 with libc 2.3.5, allows local users to cause a "stack overflow," and possibly gain privileges, by running a script from a current working directory that has a long name, related to the realpath function. NOTE: this might not be a vulnerability. However, the fact that it appears in a programming language interpreter could mean that some applications are affected, although attack scenarios might be limited because the attacker might already need to cross privilege boundaries to cause an exploitable program to be placed in a directory with a long name; or, depending on the method that Python uses to determine the current working directory, setuid applications might be affected.

CVE

CVE-2006-1542

CWE

CWE-121: Stack-based Buffer Overflow

CVSS base score

3.7

Published

2006-03-30

OWASP

A08 Software and Data Integrity Failures

Orthogonal defect classification

Function

Code defect classification

Incorrect Functionality

Category

Memory Corruption

Subcategory

Buffer Overflows

Accessibility scope

Local

Impact

Privilege Escalation

Fixed by upgrading

Yes

Solution

Upgrade to Python 2.4.3 or later.

import os

def realpath(path):
    resolved_path = os.path.realpath(path)
    return resolved_path

if __name__ == "__main__":
    long_directory_name = 'a' * 10000
    os.chdir(long_directory_name)
    user_input_path = input("Enter a path: ")
    resolved_path = realpath(user_input_path)
    print(f"Resolved path: {resolved_path}")

import os

def realpath(path):
    try:
        resolved_path = os.path.realpath(path)
        if len(resolved_path) > 4096:
            raise ValueError("Resolved path is too long")
        return resolved_path
    except Exception as e:
        print(f"Error resolving path: {e}")
        return None

if __name__ == "__main__":
    user_input_path = input("Enter a path: ")
    path = realpath(user_input_path)
    if path:
        print(f"Resolved safe path: {path}")

@misc{vaitp:cve20061542,
  title        = {{Stack-based buffer overflow in Python < 2.4.2}},
  author       = {Bogaerts, Fr\'ed\'eric and Ivaki, Naghmeh and Fonseca, Jos\'e},
  year         = {2006},
  note         = {VAITP Python Vulnerability Dataset, entry CVE-2006-1542},
  howpublished = {\url{https://netpack.pt/vaitp/vulnerability/CVE-2006-1542/}}
}