[ GLSA 200909-20 ] cURL: Certificate validation error

[GLSA]

Gentoo Linux Security Advisory

Title: cURL: Certificate validation error (GLSA 200909-20)
Severity: normal
Exploitable: remote
Date: September 25, 2009
Bug(s): #281515
ID: 200909-20

Synopsis


An error in the X.509 certificate handling of cURL might enable remote
attackers to conduct man-in-the-middle attacks.


Background


cURL is a command line tool for transferring files with URL syntax,
supporting numerous protocols.


Affected Packages

Package: net-misc/curl
Vulnerable: < 7.19.6
Unaffected: >= 7.19.6
Architectures: All supported architectures


Description


Scott Cantor reported that cURL does not properly handle fields in
X.509 certificates that contain an ASCII NUL () character.
Specifically, the processing of such fields is stopped at the first
occurence of a NUL character. This type of vulnerability was recently
discovered by Dan Kaminsky and Moxie Marlinspike.


Impact


A remote attacker might employ a specially crafted X.509 certificate
(that for instance contains a NUL character in the Common Name field)
to conduct man-in-the-middle attacks.


Workaround


There is no known workaround at this time.


Resolution


All cURL users should upgrade to the latest version: