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LtpApplication · Debian

CVE-2008-5145

MEDIUM · 6.9 CVSS v2.0 Published 2008-11-18
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
74/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
No privileges Zero-click

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 · unedited
ltpmenu in ltp 20060918 allows local users to overwrite arbitrary files via a symlink attack on a /tmp/runltp.mainmenu.##### temporary file.

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 confidence

ltpmenu in LTP 20060918 creates temporary files with predictable names (/tmp/runltp.mainmenu.#####) without checking for existing symlinks or using secure file creation methods. A local attacker can pre-create a symlink with the expected filename to cause ltpmenu to overwrite arbitrary files owned by the user running the tool.

MitigationReplace insecure temporary file creation with mkstemp() or open() with O_EXCL flag to prevent symlink attacks, or use a secure temporary directory with restricted permissions.

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
LtpApplication
Affected:= 20060918

CVSS 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
M
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Complete
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete

AV:L/AC:M/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Check if LTP package is installed
    Run: dpkg -l | grep ltp or rpm -qa | grep ltp
    Affected if No LTP package is installed, then not affected
  2. Identify installed LTP version
    Run: dpkg -l ltp or rpm -q ltp to retrieve the exact version number
    Affected if Version is exactly 20060918 (Debian package)
  3. Verify ltpmenu binary exists
    Run: which ltpmenu or dpkg -L ltp | grep ltpmenu
    Affected if Binary exists and version is 20060918
  4. Check temporary file creation behavior
    Examine the ltpmenu source code or binary for /tmp/runltp.mainmenu pattern usage and lack of O_EXCL flag in open() calls
    Affected if Code uses predictable filenames without O_EXCL or mkstemp()
  5. Inspect /tmp directory permissions
    Run: ls -la /tmp | head to verify sticky bit is set (drwxrwxrwt)
    Affected if World-writable /tmp without sticky bit increases exploitability but does not change that the flaw exists

A user is affected if LTP version 20060918 is installed and the ltpmenu binary uses predictable temporary file names without secure creation methods.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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 data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Replace insecure temporary file creation with mkstemp() or open() with O_EXCL flag to prevent symlink attacks, or use a secure temporary directory with restricted permissions.

Fix this in Ltp Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
6.0 hours of engineering $1,090
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2008-5145 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • 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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