[ GLSA 200603-06 ] GNU tar: Buffer overflow

[GLSA]

Gentoo Linux Security Advisory

Title: GNU tar: Buffer overflow (GLSA 200603-06)
Severity: normal
Exploitable: remote
Date: March 10, 2006
Bug(s): #123038
ID: 200603-06

Synopsis


A malicious tar archive could trigger a Buffer overflow in GNU tar,
potentially resulting in the execution of arbitrary code.


Background


GNU tar is the standard GNU utility for creating and manipulating
tar archives, a common format used for creating backups and
distributing files on UNIX-like systems.


Affected Packages

Package: app-arch/tar
Vulnerable: < 1.15.1-r1
Unaffected: >= 1.15.1-r1
Architectures: All supported architectures


Description


Jim Meyering discovered a flaw in the handling of certain header
fields that could result in a buffer overflow when extracting or
listing the contents of an archive.


Impact


A remote attacker could construct a malicious tar archive that
could potentially execute arbitrary code with the privileges of the
user running GNU tar.


Workaround


There is no known workaround at this time.


Resolution


All GNU tar users should upgrade to the latest version: