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AUSCERT External Security Bulletin Redistribution
ESB-2009.1231
Symantec Altiris Deployment Solution Multiple Vulnerabilities
31 August 2009
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AusCERT Security Bulletin Summary
---------------------------------
Product: Symantec Altiris Deployment Solution 6.9.x
Publisher: Symantec
Operating System: Windows
Impact/Access: Unauthorised Access -- Remote/Unauthenticated
Modify Arbitrary Files -- Remote/Unauthenticated
Execute Arbitrary Code/Commands -- Existing Account
Denial of Service -- Existing Account
Resolution: Patch/Upgrade
Original Bulletin:
http://www.symantec.com/business/security_response/securityupdates/detail.jsp?fid=security_advisory&pvid=security_advisory&year=2009&suid=20090826_00
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Symantec Altiris Deployment Solution Multiple Vulnerabilities
SYM09-011
August 26, 2009
Description
Revision History
None
Severity
Low to High
Remote Access Yes, Adjacent Network
Local Access No
Authentication Required No
Exploit publicly available No
Overview
Symantecs Altiris Deployment Solution contains vulnerabilities that could
potentially be leveraged for unauthorized file access or a denial of
service on a client system, authentication bypass on the Server to local
system-level access on a client system.
Affected Product(s)
Product Version Build Solution(s)
Altiris Deployment Solution 6.9.x All 6.9 SP3 Build 430
Details
Symantec was notified of issues impacting the Symantec Altiris Deployment
Solution during client/server communications.
1) The DBManager authentication can potentially be bypassed. The
DBManager is assigned a default listening port. A malicious user
with authorized network access and working knowledge of the command
structure of the DBManager could potentially pass unauthenticated
commands remotely to this service. Successful exploitation of this
issue could potentially result in the malicious user being able to
modify the Altiris Database to add/remove users and access or
potentially modify currently scheduled tasks which could adversely
impact multiple clients. This is considered a high severity issue.
2) The Aclient GUI is not fully protected from unauthorized access.
While the installation directory is protected, the Everyone user
group is implemented with full control of the client executable by
default. A non-privileged user could potentially use Everyone user
group access to maliciously modify the client with arbitrary code.
The GUI binary runs with logged on user privileges by default.
Should any other privileged user log into the client, the results
could be a potential elevation of privilege and compromise of the
client system. This issue has a potentially high severity.
3) When using AClient agent of the Symantec Altiris Deployment Solution,
an option is available to provide key-based authentication between
the deployment server and a client system. Once authentication has
been implemented, communications between the client and server is
secure. However, there is a small window of vulnerability, just prior
to the authentication handshake when authentication can potentially
be bypassed, e.g., when the client system is just being booted or
having to reconnect to the deployment solution server. At this point,
a malicious individual on the network with access to or the ability
to impersonate a deployment server could issue alternate commands to
a client just prior to the handshake. If successful, the client would
accept these commands as valid and implement them with SYSTEM level
privileges. A malicious user, with sufficient access to the network,
could potential disrupt communications between the deployment server
and a client system and exploit the automatic reconnection by the
client to attempt an attack of this nature. This is considered a
medium severity issue.
4) The functionality of the Symantec Altiris Deployment Solution
includes the ability to transfer files from the server to the
deployed clients. A malicious user with network access and knowledge
of the port assigned for file transfer can potentially exploit a race
condition by making successive multiple connections to this port to
intercept the content of these files prior to legitimate clients
accessing them. Done successfully, this can result in unauthorized
file access and/or a potential partial denial of service. Once the
files have been downloaded from the deployment server, the server
assumes they were received by an authorized client and no longer
attempts to update the client with those updates.
With encryption enabled, the result of any unauthorized file access would
only be a partial denial of service of authorized client systems failing to
receive the available update(s). This is considered a low severity issue.
Symantec Response
Symantec engineers have verified these findings and released an update to
resolve this issue.
Upgrade to at least version 6.9 SP3 Build 430. as follows:
* Go to http://www.altiris.com/download.aspx
* Enter your email address.
* Select "Deployment Solution for Clients 6.9 SP3" from the drop-down
box
* Click "Submit"
* Accept the "End User License Agreement"
* Click on "Deployment Solution for Clients 6.9 SP3" to download a zip
file containing the Deployment Solution update.
* Unzip the update package and double-click on
Altiris_DeploymentSolutionWin_6_9.exe.
* Follow the installation instructions
Best Practices
As part of normal best practices, Symantec strongly recommends:
* Restrict access to administration or management systems to privileged
users.
* Restrict remote access, if required, to trusted/authorized systems
only.
* Run under the principle of least privilege where possible to limit the
impact of exploit by threats.
* Keep all operating systems and applications updated with the latest
vendor patches.
* Follow a multi-layered approach to security. Run both firewall and
anti-malware applications, at a minimum, to provide multiple points of
detection and protection to both inbound and outbound threats.
* Deploy network and host-based intrusion detection systems to monitor
network traffic for signs of anomalous or suspicious activity. This
may aid in detection of attacks or malicious activity related to
exploitation of latent vulnerabilities
Credit:
Symantec would like to thank Luke Jennings with MWRInfosecurity for
reporting these issues and providing full coordination and assistance while
Symantec resolved them.
References:
SecurityFocus, http://www.securityfocus.com, has assigned Bugtraq IDs (BID)
to these issues for inclusion in the SecurityFocus vulnerability database.
The BIDs assigned are
36110 for the first issue, DBManager authentication bypass
36111 for the second issue, client privilege elevation
36112 for the third issue, race condition unauthorized file access/denial of
service
36113 for the forth issue, client/server communications authentication
bypass
A CVE Candidate name will be requested from the Common Vulnerabilities and
Exposures (CVE) initiative for these issues. This advisory will be revised
accordingly upon receipt of the CVE Candidate name. These issues are
candidates for inclusion in the CVE list (http://cve.mitre.org), which
standardizes names for security problems.
Symantec takes the security and proper functionality of our products very
seriously. As founding members of the Organization for Internet Safety
(OISafety), Symantec supports and follows the principles of responsible
disclosure. Symantec also subscribes to the vulnerability disclosure
guidelines outlined by the National Infrastructure Advisory Council (NIAC).
Please contact secure@symantec.com if you feel you have discovered a
security issue in a Symantec product. A Symantec Product Security team
member will contact you regarding your submission. Symantec strongly
recommends using encrypted email for reporting vulnerability information
to secure@symantec.com. The Symantec Product Security PGP key can be found
at the end of this message.
Symantec has developed a Product Vulnerability Response document outlining
the process we follow in addressing suspected vulnerabilities in our
products. This document is available below.
Symantec Vulnerability Response Policy
Symantec Product Vulnerability Management PGP Key Symantec Product
Vulnerability Management PGP Key
Copyright (c) 2009 by Symantec Corp.
Permission to redistribute this alert electronically is granted as long as
it is not edited in any way unless authorized by Symantec Security Response.
Reprinting the whole or part of this alert in any medium other than
electronically requires permission from secure@symantec.com
Disclaimer
The information in the advisory is believed to be accurate at the time of
publishing based on currently available information. Use of the information
constitutes acceptance for use in an AS IS condition. There are no
warranties with regard to this information. Neither the author nor the
publisher accepts any liability for any direct, indirect, or consequential
loss or damage arising from use of, or reliance on, this information.
Symantec, Symantec products, Symantec Security Response, and
secure@symantec.com are registered trademarks of Symantec Corp. and/or
affiliated companies in the United States and other countries. All other
registered and unregistered trademarks represented in this document are the
sole property of their respective companies/owners.
Last modified on: August 26, 2009
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