USN-1215-1: APT vulnerabilities

Ubuntu Security Notice USN-1215-1

22nd September, 2011

apt vulnerabilities

A security issue affects these releases of Ubuntu and its derivatives:

  • Ubuntu 11.04
  • Ubuntu 10.10
  • Ubuntu 10.04 LTS
  • Ubuntu 8.04 LTS

Summary

An attacker could trick APT into installing altered packages.

Software description

  • apt - Advanced front-end for dpkg

Details

It was discovered that the apt-key utility incorrectly verified GPG
keys when downloaded via the net-update option. If a remote attacker were
able to perform a man-in-the-middle attack, this flaw could potentially be
used to install altered packages. This update corrects the issue by
disabling the net-update option completely. A future update will re-enable
the option with corrected verification.

Update instructions

The problem can be corrected by updating your system to the following package version:

Ubuntu 11.04:
apt 0.8.13.2ubuntu4.2
Ubuntu 10.10:
apt 0.8.3ubuntu7.2
Ubuntu 10.04 LTS:
apt 0.7.25.3ubuntu9.7
Ubuntu 8.04 LTS:
apt 0.7.9ubuntu17.3

To update your system, please follow these instructions: https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Security/Upgrades.

In general, a standard system update will make all the necessary changes.

References

LP: 856489