Description
The addmntent function in the GNU C Library (aka glibc or libc6) 2.13 and earlier does not report an error status for failed attempts to write to the /etc/mtab file, which makes it easier for local users to trigger corruption of this file, as demonstrated by writes from a process with a small RLIMIT_FSIZE value, a different vulnerability than CVE-2010-0296.
Fixed in Linux distributions
Distributions backport fixes, so the version that fixes this vulnerability differs per release — upgrade to at least the version shown. From the distributions' security trackers and advisories.
Debian
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debian 14 | glibc | 2.13-8 | — |
| Debian 13 | glibc | 2.13-8 | — |
| Debian 12 | glibc | 2.13-8 | — |
Red Hat
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| RHEL 6 | nscd +7 | 2.12-1.47.el6 | RHSA-2011:1526 |
| RHEL 5 | nscd +6 | 2.5-65.el5_7.3 | RHSA-2012:0126 |
| RHEL 4 | nscd +8 | 2.3.4-2.57 | RHSA-2012:0125 |
Advisories 3
- RHSA-2012:0125 Red Hat Security Advisory: glibc security and bug fix update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Jun 28, 2026
- RHSA-2012:0126 Red Hat Security Advisory: glibc security update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Jun 28, 2026
- RHSA-2011:1526 Red Hat Security Advisory: glibc security, bug fix, and enhancement update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Jun 26, 2026
References
- [oss-security] 20110314 Re: Suid mount helpers fail to anticipate RLIMIT_FSIZE mailing-list
- [oss-security] 20110303 Suid mount helpers fail to anticipate RLIMIT_FSIZE mailing-list
- http://sourceware.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=12625
- [oss-security] 20110322 Re: Suid mount helpers fail to anticipate RLIMIT_FSIZE mailing-list
- 46740 vdb-entry
- [oss-security] 20110322 Re: Suid mount helpers fail to anticipate RLIMIT_FSIZE mailing-list
- [oss-security] 20110305 Re: Suid mount helpers fail to anticipate RLIMIT_FSIZE mailing-list
- https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=688980
- [oss-security] 20110307 Re: Suid mount helpers fail to anticipate RLIMIT_FSIZE mailing-list
- MDVSA-2011:178 vendor-advisory
- [oss-security] 20110401 Re: Suid mount helpers fail to anticipate RLIMIT_FSIZE mailing-list
- [oss-security] 20110304 Re: Suid mount helpers fail to anticipate RLIMIT_FSIZE mailing-list
- [oss-security] 20110314 Re: Suid mount helpers fail to anticipate RLIMIT_FSIZE mailing-list
- [oss-security] 20110331 Re: Suid mount helpers fail to anticipate RLIMIT_FSIZE mailing-list
- [oss-security] 20110304 Re: Suid mount helpers fail to anticipate RLIMIT_FSIZE mailing-list
- MDVSA-2011:179 vendor-advisory
- [oss-security] 20110314 Re: Suid mount helpers fail to anticipate RLIMIT_FSIZE mailing-list
- [oss-security] 20110303 Re: Suid mount helpers fail to anticipate RLIMIT_FSIZE mailing-list
- [oss-security] 20110305 Re: Suid mount helpers fail to anticipate RLIMIT_FSIZE mailing-list
- RHSA-2011:1526 vendor-advisory
- [oss-security] 20110331 Re: Suid mount helpers fail to anticipate RLIMIT_FSIZE mailing-list
- [oss-security] 20110315 Re: Suid mount helpers fail to anticipate RLIMIT_FSIZE mailing-list