Description
In Shadow 4.13, it is possible to inject control characters into fields provided to the SUID program chfn (change finger). Although it is not possible to exploit this directly (e.g., adding a new user fails because \n is in the block list), it is possible to misrepresent the /etc/passwd file when viewed. Use of \r manipulations and Unicode characters to work around blocking of the : character make it possible to give the impression that a new user has been added. In other words, an adversary may be able to convince a system administrator to take the system offline (an indirect, social-engineered denial of service) by demonstrating that "cat /etc/passwd" shows a rogue user account.
Metrics
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:NWeakness enumeration
Affected software
| Vendor | Product | Versions |
|---|---|---|
| n/a | n/a | n/a |
| Siemens | SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1518-4 PN/DP MFP | >= V3.1.0, < V3.1.5 |
| Siemens | SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1518-4 PN/DP MFP | >= V3.1.0, < V3.1.5 |
| Siemens | SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1518F-4 PN/DP MFP | >= V3.1.0, < V3.1.5 |
| Siemens | SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1518F-4 PN/DP MFP | >= V3.1.0, < V3.1.5 |
| Siemens | SIPLUS S7-1500 CPU 1518-4 PN/DP MFP | >= V3.1.0, < V3.1.5 |
| Siemens | RUGGEDCOM ROX MX5000 | < V2.17.0 |
| Siemens | RUGGEDCOM ROX MX5000RE | < V2.17.0 |
| Siemens | RUGGEDCOM ROX RX1400 | < V2.17.0 |
| Siemens | RUGGEDCOM ROX RX1500 | < V2.17.0 |
| Siemens | RUGGEDCOM ROX RX1501 | < V2.17.0 |
| Siemens | RUGGEDCOM ROX RX1510 | < V2.17.0 |
| Siemens | RUGGEDCOM ROX RX1511 | < V2.17.0 |
| Siemens | RUGGEDCOM ROX RX1512 | < V2.17.0 |
| Siemens | RUGGEDCOM ROX RX1524 | < V2.17.0 |
| Siemens | RUGGEDCOM ROX RX1536 | < V2.17.0 |
| Siemens | RUGGEDCOM ROX RX5000 | < V2.17.0 |
References
- https://github.com/shadow-maint/shadow/commit/e5905c4b84d4fb90aefcd96ee618411ebfac663dPatch
- https://github.com/shadow-maint/shadow/pull/687Issue Tracking
- https://www.trustwave.com/en-us/resources/blogs/spiderlabs-blog/cve-2023-29383-abusing-linux-chfn-to-misrepresent-etc-passwd/Exploit, Third Party Advisory
- https://www.trustwave.com/en-us/resources/security-resources/security-advisories/?fid=31797Exploit, Third Party Advisory
- https://github.com/shadow-maint/shadow/commit/e5905c4b84d4fb90aefcd96ee618411ebfac663dPatch
- https://github.com/shadow-maint/shadow/pull/687Issue Tracking
- https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2025/04/msg00026.html
- https://www.trustwave.com/en-us/resources/blogs/spiderlabs-blog/cve-2023-29383-abusing-linux-chfn-to-misrepresent-etc-passwd/Exploit, Third Party Advisory
- https://www.trustwave.com/en-us/resources/security-resources/security-advisories/?fid=31797Exploit, Third Party Advisory
- https://cert-portal.siemens.com/productcert/html/ssa-202008.html
- https://cert-portal.siemens.com/productcert/html/ssa-398330.html
Timeline
- Published
- Apr 14, 2023
- Last modified
- Oct 14, 2026
- NVD status
- Modified