Ubuntu patch for serious security vulnerability

[Fenyx]

Ubuntu has released a patch to fix a critical security vulnerability. This flaw only affects those running Ubuntu Breezy (5.10) or those who upgraded to Dapper from Breezy.

Everyone affected is encouraged to download this patch. The advisory is found here:

http://www.ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=143622

EDIT: I guess I should quote the bulletin itself:

USN-262-1] Ubuntu 5.10 installer password disclosure
================================================== =========
Ubuntu Security Notice USN-262-1 March 12, 2006
Ubuntu 5.10 installer vulnerability
https://launchpad.net/bugs/34606
================================================== =========

A security issue affects the following Ubuntu releases:

Ubuntu 5.10 (Breezy Badger)

The following packages are affected:

base-config
passwd

The problem can be corrected by upgrading the affected package to
version 2.67ubuntu20 (base-config) and 1:4.0.3-37ubuntu8 (passwd). In
general, a standard system upgrade is sufficient to effect the
necessary changes.

Details follow:

Karl Øie discovered that the Ubuntu 5.10 installer failed to clean
passwords in the installer log files. Since these files were
world-readable, any local user could see the password of the first
user account, which has full sudo privileges by default.

The updated packages remove the passwords and additionally make the
log files readable only by root.

This does not affect the Ubuntu 4.10, 5.04, or the upcoming 6.04
installer. However, if you upgraded from Ubuntu 5.10 to the current
development version of Ubuntu 6.04 ('Dapper Drake'), please ensure
that you upgrade the passwd package to version 1:4.0.13-7ubuntu2 to
fix the installer log files.


Source archives:

http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/po...67ubuntu20.dsc
Size/MD5: 758 c22bb6e3be4d59aa93e84327f60e89ab
http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/po...buntu20.tar.gz
Size/MD5: 577194 99eabbe70227169feaff28ff9062d097
http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/po...buntu8.diff.gz
Size/MD5: 1067297 9db7bb924125a5587380efc08f6787e1
http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/po...-37ubuntu8.dsc
Size/MD5: 876 50cdfae3bfbe1bb1bb4be192d7de19a7
http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/po....3.orig.tar.gz
Size/MD5: 1045704 b52dfb2e5e8d9a4a2aae0ca1b266c513

Architecture independent packages:

http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/po...ntu20_all.udeb
Size/MD5: 3298 dd42b2901f6f5d7525083c27cbb23407
http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/po...untu20_all.deb
Size/MD5: 291224 e95d7a1d25074ea57d444e817cef1850
http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/po...untu8_all.udeb
Size/MD5: 1740 6c7bc8e12968d9876b6e1b27f0476484
http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/po...ntu20_all.udeb
Size/MD5: 2760 f6ebc84fd2bff0275b1e64d53fdc9955

amd64 architecture (Athlon64, Opteron, EM64T Xeon)

http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/po...ntu8_amd64.deb
Size/MD5: 180662 de75ded6034f0d7226dfbf0ec66e2be7
http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/po...ntu8_amd64.deb
Size/MD5: 589790 f90c48af4e1c55202f22127e72dbf45d

i386 architecture (x86 compatible Intel/AMD)

http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/po...untu8_i386.deb
Size/MD5: 171882 347fa929d15c3689bd68fc487cc116c6
http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/po...untu8_i386.deb
Size/MD5: 515580 b8c965e4a5c40d1c50e8816aeef689bc

powerpc architecture (Apple Macintosh G3/G4/G5)

http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/po...u8_powerpc.deb
Size/MD5: 179886 42ebfcd496b621bdab29e9a6b3f50522
http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/po...u8_powerpc.deb
Size/MD5: 568426 089edb3f8110ab191bba6d061b199385

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[askrieger]

Re: Ubuntu patch for serious security vulnerability

This was covered in http://kubuntuforums.net/forums/index.php?topic=4026.0 Thanks for the Shout and the Announcement. This is BIG and BAD.