CVE-2010-3843
📋 TL;DR
CVE-2010-3843 is a buffer overflow vulnerability in the GTK interface of ettercap, a network security tool. It allows local attackers to execute arbitrary code by exploiting an unchecked sscanf() call when parsing a malicious settings file in /tmp/.ettercap_gtk. This affects systems where ettercap with GTK support is installed and users have access to create files in /tmp.
💻 Affected Systems
- ettercap
📦 What is this software?
Ettercap by Ettercap Project
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Local privilege escalation to root, allowing complete system compromise and potential lateral movement.
Likely Case
Local user gains elevated privileges (root) on the affected system.
If Mitigated
No impact if proper file permissions prevent unauthorized /tmp file creation or ettercap isn't installed.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires local access to create a malicious file in /tmp directory.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 0.7.4 and later
Vendor Advisory: https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/ettercap/+bug/656347
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
1. Update ettercap to version 0.7.4 or later using your package manager. 2. For Ubuntu/Debian: sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install ettercap. 3. For Red Hat/CentOS: sudo yum update ettercap.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Remove GTK ettercap
linuxUninstall ettercap-gtk or disable GTK interface if not needed
sudo apt-get remove ettercap-gtk
sudo yum remove ettercap-gtk
Secure /tmp directory
linuxSet /tmp with sticky bit and proper permissions to prevent unauthorized file creation
sudo chmod 1777 /tmp
sudo chown root:root /tmp
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Remove or restrict execute permissions on ettercap binary for non-privileged users
- Implement strict access controls on /tmp directory and monitor for suspicious file creation
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check ettercap version: ettercap --version | grep Version. If version is earlier than 0.7.4, system is vulnerable.Check Version:
ettercap --versionVerify Fix Applied:
Verify ettercap version is 0.7.4 or later: ettercap --version | grep 'Version: 0.7.4'📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Failed ettercap executions
- Suspicious file creation in /tmp directory
Network Indicators:
- Unusual ettercap network scanning activity from non-privileged users
SIEM Query:
process_name='ettercap' AND user!='root'🔗 References
- http://article.gmane.org/gmane.comp.security.oss.general/3660
- https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/ettercap/+bug/656347
- https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=643453
- http://article.gmane.org/gmane.comp.security.oss.general/3660
- https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/ettercap/+bug/656347
- https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=643453
