CVE-2021-45083: Cobbler Incorrect Default Permissions Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-5946-mpw5-pqxx
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CVSS 7.1
CWE-276
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2021-45083 is a HIGH (CVSS 7.1) incorrect default permissions vulnerability (CWE-276: Incorrect Default Permissions) affecting Cobbler libraries in the PyPI ecosystem. The issue involves incorrect default permissions in cobbler. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 3.3.1.

CVE-2021-45083 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2021-45083
GHSA Identifier GHSA-5946-mpw5-pqxx
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 7.1
CWE Classification CWE-276: Incorrect Default Permissions
Affected Product Cobbler
Package Ecosystem PyPI
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 7.1

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N).

Attack Vector Local (AV:L)
Attack Complexity Low (AC:L)
Privileges Required Low (PR:L)
User Interaction None (UI:N)
Scope Unchanged (S:U)
Confidentiality High (C:H)
Integrity High (I:H)
Availability None (A:N)

How to Fix CVE-2021-45083

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Cobbler dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

cobbler fixed: 3.3.1 
pip install cobbler>=3.3.1
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release: 

pip show cobbler

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Python environment is affected by CVE-2021-45083, inspect your installed packages using pip:

pip show cobbler

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Cobbler in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 3.3.1), your application is affected.

Note: The pip show cobbler command checks currently installed packages in your active Python environment.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-276: Incorrect Default Permissions, where during installation, installed file permissions are set to allow anyone to modify those files. In Cobbler, software state validation or input boundaries are circumvented during processing. Review the official source advisory statement below for specific affected components, classes, and reproduction details.

Source Advisory Statement

An issue was discovered in Cobbler before 3.3.1. Files in /etc/cobbler are world readable. Two of those files contain some sensitive information that can be exposed to a local user who has non-privileged access to the server. The users.digest file contains the sha2-512 digest of users in a Cobbler local installation. In the case of an easy-to-guess password, it's trivial to obtain the plaintext string. The settings.yaml file contains secrets such as the hashed default password.

CVE-2021-45083 Affected Cobbler Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
3.3.1
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
cobbler
pypi/cobbler
PyPI
< 3.3.1
3.3.1

References

NVD — CVE-2021-45083 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-45083
Cobbler Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/cobbler/cobbler/pull/2945
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/cobbler/cobbler/commit/10b2112db83fedfc391e900edfedc2b4e507d3f7
bugzilla.suse.com/show_bug.cgi WEB
https://bugzilla.suse.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1193671
GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-5946-mpw5-pqxx
Cobbler Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/cobbler/cobbler
Cobbler Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/cobbler/cobbler/releases
Cobbler Release RELEASE
https://github.com/cobbler/cobbler/releases/tag/v3.3.1
Cobbler Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/pypa/advisory-database/tree/main/vulns/cobbler/PYSEC-2022-38.yaml
lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/packa... WEB
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/TEJN7CPW6YCHBFQPFZKGA6AVA6T5NPIW
lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/packa... WEB
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/Z5CSXQE7Q4TVDQJKFYBO4XDH3BZ7BLAR
lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/packa... WEB
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/ZCXMOUW4DH4DYWIJN44SMSU6R3CZDZBE
Cobbler Security Information SECURITY
https://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2022/02/18/3

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2021-45083?
CVE-2021-45083 is a security vulnerability in Cobbler involving Incorrect Default Permissions in Cobbler under CWE-276: Incorrect Default Permissions.
Which Cobbler versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 3.3.1 across affected packages: cobbler.
What version fixes CVE-2021-45083?
Upgrading to 3.3.1 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is cobbler affected?
Yes, cobbler is affected in releases prior to 3.3.1. Upgrade your dependency to 3.3.1 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2021-45083?
CVE-2021-45083 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.1 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2021-45083?
CVE-2021-45083 is classified under CWE-276: Incorrect Default Permissions (During installation, installed file permissions are set to allow anyone to modify those files.).
How can I check PyPI dependencies for CVE-2021-45083?
Run the dependency tree command: 'pip show cobbler'. This command lists direct and transitive dependencies in your build configuration so you can verify if a vulnerable version is resolved.
Machine-readable OSV JSON OSV v1.5 Schema
Normalized schema output
View Raw JSON 
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-5946-mpw5-pqxx",
  "modified" : "2024-09-13T18:30:44Z",
  "published" : "2022-02-21T00:00:20Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2021-45083" ],
  "summary" : "Incorrect Default Permissions in Cobbler",
  "details" : "An issue was discovered in Cobbler before 3.3.1. Files in /etc/cobbler are world readable. Two of those files contain some sensitive information that can be exposed to a local user who has non-privileged access to the server. The users.digest file contains the sha2-512 digest of users in a Cobbler local installation. In the case of an easy-to-guess password, it's trivial to obtain the plaintext string. The settings.yaml file contains secrets such as the hashed default password.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N"
  }, {
    "type" : "CVSS_V4",
    "score" : "CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "PyPI",
      "name" : "cobbler"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "3.3.1"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-45083"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/cobbler/cobbler/pull/2945"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/cobbler/cobbler/commit/10b2112db83fedfc391e900edfedc2b4e507d3f7"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://bugzilla.suse.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1193671"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-5946-mpw5-pqxx"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/cobbler/cobbler"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/cobbler/cobbler/releases"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/cobbler/cobbler/releases/tag/v3.3.1"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/pypa/advisory-database/tree/main/vulns/cobbler/PYSEC-2022-38.yaml"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/TEJN7CPW6YCHBFQPFZKGA6AVA6T5NPIW"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/Z5CSXQE7Q4TVDQJKFYBO4XDH3BZ7BLAR"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/ZCXMOUW4DH4DYWIJN44SMSU6R3CZDZBE"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2022/02/18/3"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-276" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2022-03-08T18:49:35Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2022-02-20T18:15:00Z"
  }
}