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Mathematica8 on Linux /tmp/MathLink vulnerability
From: paul.szabo () sydney edu au
Date: Tue, 4 Jan 2011 10:10:38 +1100
The problem that was reported as below for Mathematica7, is present also/still in (the "free trial" version of) Mathematica8. Cheers, Paul Szabo psz () maths usyd edu au http://www.maths.usyd.edu.au/u/psz/ School of Mathematics and Statistics University of Sydney Australia --- I wrote on 14 May 2010:
"If you're doing anything technical, think Mathematica --..." http://www.wolfram.com/products/mathematica/index.html Mathematica7 on Linux uses the /tmp/MathLink directory in insecure ways. Mathematica creates or re-uses an existing /tmp/MathLink directory, and overwrites files within and follows symlinks. This type of behaviour is "known unsafe" on multi-user machines e.g. University login servers. As a classic example of a symlink attack, if an "attacker" uses: mkdir /tmp/MathLink; ln -s /home/victim/.bashrc /tmp/MathLink/.gshmm then when the victim runs Mathematica his ~/.bashrc will be clobbered. New files are created world-writable, allowing a complete compromise of the user account by linking to ~/.bash_logout . (If root ever uses Mathematica then the damage is greater.) Mathematica uses also /tmp/fonts$$.conf in insecure ways. Workaround: use command-line math instead of pretty interface. Notified support () wolfram com on 7 May 2010, was assigned [TS 16194].
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- Mathematica8 on Linux /tmp/MathLink vulnerability paul . szabo (Jan 04)