Process crash via trailing backslash in awk regex
Published Nov 27, 2023 · Updated Dec 6, 2024
A heap-buffer overflow in BusyBox awk 1.36.1 allows local users to crash the process with a crafted awk program file. In next_token, a trailing backslash in an invalid regular expression leaves the escape pointer unchanged, causing the parser to advance past the terminating NUL and read beyond the heap allocation. Reachability requires a user or process to invoke BusyBox awk on the malformed file; the demonstrated consequence is a process abort, with no published write primitive.
Summary
What happened
A heap-buffer overflow in BusyBox awk 1.36.1 allows local users to crash the process with a crafted awk program file. In next_token, a trailing backslash in an invalid regular expression leaves the escape pointer unchanged, causing the parser to advance past the terminating NUL and read beyond the heap allocation. Reachability requires a user or process to invoke BusyBox awk on the malformed file; the demonstrated consequence is a process abort, with no published write primitive.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2023-42366
- Published
- Nov 27, 2023
- Updated
- Dec 6, 2024
- Vendor
- Unknown vendor
- Product
- Unknown product
- Classifications
- T1499.004
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Nov 27, 2023CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Dec 6, 2024Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
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What is affected?
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Published CVSS scores
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Attacks
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Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
- BusyBox Bug 15874 proof-of-concept fileproof of concept · demonstrated
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Technologies
Your stack
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