CVE-1999-1038
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedTiger 2.2.3 allows local users to overwrite arbitrary files via a symlink attack on various temporary files in Tiger's default working directory, as defined by the WORKDIR variable.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidenceTiger 2.2.3 is vulnerable to a local symlink attack where unprivileged users can create symbolic links in the default working directory (controlled by WORKDIR variable) pointing to arbitrary files. When Tiger runs and creates/overwrites its temporary files, it follows these symlinks, enabling local users to overwrite sensitive system files with root privileges.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data= 2.2.3CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Complete
- Integrity
- Complete
- Availability
- Complete
AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Verify Tiger installation and versionRun 'tiger --version' or check the installed package version with your package manager (e.g., 'rpm -q tiger' or 'dpkg -l tiger')Affected if The installed version is exactly Tamu Tiger 2.2.3
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Locate Tiger configuration filesCheck for /etc/tiger.conf or look in /etc/tiger/ for configuration files used by TigerAffected if Configuration files exist and are readable by the current user
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Check the WORKDIR settingSearch the Tiger configuration files for 'WORKDIR' or 'WORK_DIR' settings (e.g., 'grep -r WORKDIR /etc/tiger*')Affected if A WORKDIR is defined and points to a world-writable directory (such as /tmp or a world-writable subdirectory)
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Inspect working directory permissionsIf WORKDIR is not explicitly set, identify the default working directory used by Tiger and check its permissions with 'ls -la'Affected if The working directory has world-writable permissions (drwxrwxrwx)
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Verify Tiger execution contextCheck if Tiger is typically executed with root privileges (e.g., via sudo or setuid root)Affected if Tiger runs with root or elevated privileges while using a world-writable working directory
A user is affected if they are running Tamu Tiger version 2.2.3 with a world-writable working directory (especially the default or configured WORKDIR) while Tiger executes with root privileges.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataConfigure Tiger to use a secure, non-world-writable working directory and implement safe temporary file handling (e.g., using mktemp or O_EXCL flags) to prevent symlink attacks on temp files.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,800.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-1999-1038 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-1999-1038 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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