RHSA-2012:0104 - Security Advisory

Topic

Updated libxml2 packages that fix one security issue are now available for
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.6 Extended Update Support.

The Red Hat Security Response Team has rated this update as having
important security impact. A Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS)
base score, which gives a detailed severity rating, is available from
the CVE link in the References section.

Description

The libxml2 library is a development toolbox providing the implementation
of various XML standards.

A heap-based buffer overflow flaw was found in the way libxml2 decoded
entity references with long names. A remote attacker could provide a
specially-crafted XML file that, when opened in an application linked
against libxml2, would cause the application to crash or, potentially,
execute arbitrary code with the privileges of the user running the
application. (CVE-2011-3919)

All users of libxml2 are advised to upgrade to these updated packages,
which contain a backported patch to correct this issue. The desktop must
be restarted (log out, then log back in) for this update to take effect.

Solution

Before applying this update, make sure all previously-released errata
relevant to your system have been applied.

This update is available via the Red Hat Network. Details on how to
use the Red Hat Network to apply this update are available at
https://access.redhat.com/kb/docs/DOC-11259

Affected Products

• Red Hat Enterprise Linux for x86_64 - Extended Update Support 5.6 x86_64
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux for x86_64 - Extended Update Support 5.6 ia64
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux for x86_64 - Extended Update Support 5.6 i386
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server - AUS 5.6 x86_64
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server - AUS 5.6 ia64
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server - AUS 5.6 i386
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux for IBM z Systems - Extended Update Support 5.6 s390x
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux for Power, big endian - Extended Update Support 5.6 ppc
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server - Extended Update Support from RHUI 5.6 x86_64
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server - Extended Update Support from RHUI 5.6 i386

Fixes

• BZ - 771896 - CVE-2011-3919 libxml2: Heap-based buffer overflow when decoding an entity reference with a long name

CVEs

• CVE-2011-3919

References

• https://access.redhat.com/security/updates/classification/#important