OpenstackApplication · Redhat
CVE-2013-4214
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 · uneditedrss-newsfeed.php in Nagios Core 3.4.4, 3.5.1, and earlier, when MAGPIE_CACHE_ON is set to 1, allows local users to overwrite arbitrary files via a symlink attack on /tmp/magpie_cache.
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 confidenceIn Nagios Core 3.4.4, 3.5.1, and earlier, the rss-newsfeed.php script uses a predictable temp file path (/tmp/magpie_cache) when MAGPIE_CACHE_ON is enabled. A local unprivileged user can create a symlink at this location pointing to an arbitrary target file. When the application writes to the symlink, it follows the link and overwrites the target file, allowing local privilege escalation or denial of service.
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
OpenstackApplication
= 3.0<= 3.5.1= 3.4.4CVSS 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
- None
- Integrity
- Complete
- Availability
- Complete
AV:L/AC:M/Au:N/C:N/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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Identify Nagios Core installation and versionRun 'nagios --version' or check the installed package version via your package manager (e.g., 'rpm -q nagios' or 'dpkg -l nagios')Affected if The installed version is 3.4.4, 3.5.1, or any version <= 3.5.1 (excluding patched versions)
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Locate the rss-newsfeed.php scriptSearch for rss-newsfeed.php in the Nagios web interface directory, commonly found in /usr/share/nagios/html/ or /var/www/html/nagios/Affected if The script exists in the Nagios web directory, indicating the RSS newsfeed feature is installed
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Check if MAGPIE_CACHE_ON is enabledExamine the rss-newsfeed.php file and any included configuration files for the MAGPIE_CACHE_ON setting. Also check for magpie_config.php or similar configuration files in the Nagios include or lib directoriesAffected if MAGPIE_CACHE_ON is set to 1, on, or true - this is the condition required for the vulnerability to be exploitable
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Verify /tmp/magpie_cache file permissionsRun 'ls -la /tmp/magpie_cache' to check if the file exists and what type it is (regular file, symlink, or directory)Affected if The file does not exist or is writable by unprivileged users, or is a symlink controlled by a non-root user
You are affected if you run Nagios Core version 3.4.4 or <=3.5.1 with the rss-newsfeed.php script present and MAGPIE_CACHE_ON enabled, allowing an unprivileged local user to exploit the predictable /tmp/magpie_cache path for symlink-based file overwrite.
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 dataSet MAGPIE_CACHE_ON to 0 in the configuration to disable the vulnerable caching behavior, or upgrade to a patched version of Nagios Core. Additionally, restrict or monitor /tmp directory usage to prevent symlink creation by unprivileged users.
Fix this in Openstack
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 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 $3,328.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2013-4214 — 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-2013-4214 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
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