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Malicious directory junction can cause WiX RemoveFoldersEx to possibly delete elevated files

High severity GitHub Reviewed Published Mar 23, 2024 in wixtoolset/issues • Updated Mar 25, 2024

Package

nuget WixToolset.Util.wixext (NuGet)

Affected versions

< 4.0.5

Patched versions

4.0.5
nuget wix (NuGet)
< 3.14.1
>= 4.0.0, < 4.0.5
3.14.1
4.0.5

Description

Summary

The custom action behind WiX's RemoveFolderEx functionality could allow a standard user to delete protected directories.

Details

RemoveFolderEx deletes an entire directory tree during installation or uninstallation. It does so by recursing every subdirectory starting at a specified directory and adding each subdirectory to the list of directories Windows Installer should delete. If the setup author instructed RemoveFolderEx to delete a per-user folder from a per-machine installer, an attacker could create a directory junction in that per-user folder pointing to a per-machine, protected directory. Windows Installer, when executing the per-machine installer after approval by an administrator, would delete the target of the directory junction.

References

@robmen robmen published to wixtoolset/issues Mar 23, 2024
Published by the National Vulnerability Database Mar 24, 2024
Published to the GitHub Advisory Database Mar 25, 2024
Reviewed Mar 25, 2024
Last updated Mar 25, 2024

Severity

High

CVSS overall score

This score calculates overall vulnerability severity from 0 to 10 and is based on the Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS).
/ 10

CVSS v3 base metrics

Attack vector
Local
Attack complexity
Low
Privileges required
Low
User interaction
Required
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS v3 base metrics

Attack vector: More severe the more the remote (logically and physically) an attacker can be in order to exploit the vulnerability.
Attack complexity: More severe for the least complex attacks.
Privileges required: More severe if no privileges are required.
User interaction: More severe when no user interaction is required.
Scope: More severe when a scope change occurs, e.g. one vulnerable component impacts resources in components beyond its security scope.
Confidentiality: More severe when loss of data confidentiality is highest, measuring the level of data access available to an unauthorized user.
Integrity: More severe when loss of data integrity is the highest, measuring the consequence of data modification possible by an unauthorized user.
Availability: More severe when the loss of impacted component availability is highest.
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:N/I:H/A:H

EPSS score

0.045%
(17th percentile)

Weaknesses

CVE ID

CVE-2024-29188

GHSA ID

GHSA-jx4p-m4wm-vvjg

Source code

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