Description
dpkg 1.15.9 on Debian squeeze introduces support for the "C-style encoded filenames" feature without recognizing that the squeeze patch program lacks this feature, which triggers an interaction error that allows remote attackers to conduct directory traversal attacks and modify files outside of the intended directories via a crafted source package. NOTE: this can be considered a release engineering problem in the effort to fix CVE-2014-0471.
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 | dpkg | 1.17.9 | — |
| Debian 13 | dpkg | 1.17.9 | — |
| Debian 12 | dpkg | 1.17.9 | — |
| Debian 7 | dpkg | 1.16.14 | DSA-2915-2 |
| Debian 6.0 | dpkg | 1.15.10 | DSA-2915-2 |
Ubuntu
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu 14.04 LTS | dpkg | 1.17.5ubuntu5.2 | — |
Advisories 1
- DSA-2915-2 dpkg - security update Debian Security (DSA / DLA) · Mar 9, 2026
References
- https://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=746306
- http://metadata.ftp-master.debian.org/changelogs//main/d/dpkg/dpkg_1.15.10_changelog
- [oss-security] 20140429 CVE request: directory traversal in DSA-2915-1-patched dpkg in Debian squeeze mailing-list
- [oss-security] 20140501 Re: CVE request: directory traversal in DSA-2915-1-patched dpkg in Debian squeeze mailing-list
- 67181 vdb-entry