Updated mc packages that fix multiple security issues are now available. This update has been rated as having moderate security impact by the Red Hat Security Response Team.
Midnight Commander (mc) is a visual shell, much like a file manager. Several format string bugs were found in Midnight Commander. If a user is tricked by an attacker into opening a specially crafted path with mc, it may be possible to execute arbitrary code as the user running Midnight Commander. The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures project (cve.mitre.org) has assigned the name CAN-2004-1004 to this issue. Several buffer overflow bugs were found in Midnight Commander. If a user is tricked by an attacker into opening a specially crafted file or path with mc, it may be possible to execute arbitrary code as the user running Midnight Commander. The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures project (cve.mitre.org) has assigned the name CAN-2004-1005 to this issue. A buffer underflow bug was found in Midnight Commander. If a malicious local user is able to modify the extfs.ini file, it could be possible to execute arbitrary code as a user running Midnight Commander. The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures project (cve.mitre.org) has assigned the name CAN-2004-1176 to this issue. Users of mc should upgrade to these updated packages, which contain a backported patch, and are not vulnerable to this issue.
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