iDefense Security Advisory 04.15.10: Multiple Vendor AgentX++ Stack Buffer Overflow Vulnerability

iDefense Security Advisory 04.15.10
http://labs.idefense.com/intelligence/vulnerabilities/
Apr 15, 2010

I. BACKGROUND

Agent Extensibility (AgentX) Protocol was designed to address
interoperability issues with extensible SNMP agents. AgentX++ is a C++
implementation of the AgentX protocol. It is one of several C++ based
SNMP libraries developed by Frank Fock. For more information refer to
the URLs below.

http://www.agentpp.com/

http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc2741.txt

II. DESCRIPTION

Remote exploitation of a stack-based buffer overflow vulnerability
within AgentX++, as distributed with multiple vendors' products, allows
attackers to execute arbitrary code with the privileges of the AgentX
master process.

This vulnerability exists within the AgentX::receive_agentx function. By
sending multiple blocks of data to the vulnerable function, an attacker
could overwrite the data following the stack buffer, including the
saved return address.

III. ANALYSIS

Exploitation allows an attacker to execute arbitrary code with the
privileges of the running AgentX master process. In order to exploit
this vulnerability, the attacker must be able to connect to the AgentX
master port, usually TCP port 705. No authentication is required.

In the case of RealNetworks Helix Server v12, there is an option to
install the AgentX master as an NT service. If installed in this way,
the AgentX master will run with SYSTEM privileges. The privileges with
which this process runs varies in other situations.

Although the issue is present in the Linux version of Helix Server v12,
it is not exploitable due to stack buffer padding added by the GNU
compiler. Reliable code execution has been confirmed on Windows
targets.

IV. DETECTION

iDefense confirmed the existence of this vulnerability in the following
environments:

RealNetworks Helix Server v12 on Linux
RealNetworks Helix Server v12 on Windows 2003 SP2
AgentX++ source code v1.4.16

All products utilizing the AgentX++ library are suspected to be
vulnerable. Helix Server and Helix Mobile server versions prior to
14.0.0 are vulnerable (11.x,12.x and 13.x series).

V. WORKAROUND

iDefense is currently unaware of any workarounds for this issue.

VI. VENDOR RESPONSE

RealNetworks Inc. has released a patch which addresses this issue. For
more information, consult their advisory at the following URL.
http://www.realnetworks.com/uploadedFiles/Support/helix-support/SecurityUpdate041410HS.pdf

VII. CVE INFORMATION

The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) project has assigned the
name CVE-2010-1318 to this issue. This is a candidate for inclusion in
the CVE list (http://cve.mitre.org/), which standardizes names for
security problems.

VIII. DISCLOSURE TIMELINE

11/03/2008 Initial Vendor Notification
01/14/2009 Initial Vendor Reply
04/15/2010 Coordinated Public Disclosure

IX. CREDIT

This vulnerability was reported to iDefense by Manuel Santamarina
Suarez.

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X. LEGAL NOTICES

Copyright © 2010 iDefense, Inc.

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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
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