CVE-2023-2491
Description
A flaw was found in the Emacs text editor. Processing a specially crafted org-mode code with the "org-babel-execute:latex" function in ob-latex.el can result in arbitrary command execution. This CVE exists because of a CVE-2023-28617 security regression for the emacs package in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.8 and Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9.2.
Statement
This issue only affects Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.8 and Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9.2, which introduced this regression via the following errata:
https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2023:3042 (Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.8) https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2023:2366 (Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9.2)
These errata provided updates for emacs package, but did not include fixes for CVE-2023-28617.
A user who installs or updates to Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.8 or Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9.2 would be vulnerable to the CVE-2023-28617, even if they were properly fixed in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.7 and in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9.1. The CVE-2023-2491 was assigned to that Red Hat specific security regression and it is not applicable to any upstream emacs version or emacs packages of any other vendor that are not directly based on Red Hat Enterprise Linux packages.
For more details about the original security issue CVE-2023-28617, refer to the CVE page: https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2023-28617.
Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) Score Details
Info alert:Important note
CVSS scores for open source components depend on vendor-specific factors (e.g. version or build chain). Therefore, Red Hat's score and impact rating can be different from NVD and other vendors. Red Hat remains the authoritative CVE Naming Authority (CNA) source for its products and services (see Red Hat classifications).
CVSS v3 Score Breakdown
| Red Hat | NVD | cve.org | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base Score | 7.8 | 7.8 | N/A |
| Attack Vector | Local | Local | N/A |
| Attack Complexity | Low | Low | N/A |
| Privileges Required | None | Low | N/A |
| User Interaction | Required | None | N/A |
| Scope | Unchanged | Unchanged | N/A |
| Confidentiality | High | High | N/A |
| Integrity Impact | High | High | N/A |
| Availability Impact | High | High | N/A |
Vector
Red Hat: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
NVD: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Understanding the Weakness (CWE)
Integrity,Confidentiality,Availability
Technical Impact: Execute Unauthorized Code or Commands
If a malicious user injects a character (such as a semi-colon) that delimits the end of one command and the beginning of another, it may be possible to then insert an entirely new and unrelated command that was not intended to be executed. This gives an attacker a privilege or capability that they would not otherwise have.
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