Syntastic (aka vim-syntastic) through 3.9.0 does not properly handle searches for configuration files (it searches the current directory up to potentially the root). This improper handling might be exploited for arbitrary code execution via a malicious gcc plugin, if an attacker has write access to a directory that is a parent of the base directory of the project being checked. NOTE: exploitation is more difficult after 3.8.0 because filename prediction may be needed.
The product uses external input to construct a pathname that is intended to identify a file or directory that is located underneath a restricted parent directory, but the product does not properly neutralize special elements within the pathname that can cause the pathname to resolve to a location that is outside of the restricted directory.
| Link | Tags |
|---|---|
| https://www.debian.org/security/2018/dsa-4261 | third party advisory vendor advisory |
| https://github.com/vim-syntastic/syntastic/commit/6d7c0b394e001233dd09ec473fbea2002c72632f | third party advisory patch |
| https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2018/07/msg00036.html | third party advisory mailing list |
| https://github.com/vim-syntastic/syntastic/issues/2170 | issue tracking exploit third party advisory |
| https://bugs.debian.org/894736 | issue tracking exploit third party advisory |