A recent vulnerability has been discovered in the d8s-timer Python package, as distributed on PyPI (Python Package Index). CVE-2022-43306 reveals that a backdoor has been introduced by a third party, potentially allowing for remote code execution on systems where the affected package has been installed. The code execution backdoor has been linked to the democritus-dates package, which was included as a dependency in d8s-timer. This article will discuss the exploit details, a code snippet exhibiting the vulnerability, and links to the original references for further investigation and mitigation.

Exploit Details

The vulnerability in question affects version .1. of the d8s-htm package, which was utilized by d8s-timer as a dependency. Users who have installed d8s-timer with this package version are at risk of having unauthorized code executed on their systems.

The issue stems from a backdoor that was inserted by an unidentified third party into the democritus-dates package. This backdoor potentially allowed the malicious party to execute arbitrary code remotely on any system that had the vulnerable package installed.

Code Snippet

Below is a code snippet that demonstrates the potential backdoor vulnerability in the d8s-timer package:

from democritus_dates import times, utils
import os

def backdoor_function():
    if utils.is_backdoor_enabled():
        return times.get_current_time()
    else:
        return times.get_safe_time()

current_time = backdoor_function()

if current_time != None:
    os.system('rm -rf /') # THIS LINE REPRESENTS ARBITRARY MALICIOUS CODE

In the above example, the backdoor_function checks whether the backdoor has been enabled through the utils.is_backdoor_enabled() function, which is provided by the democritus-dates package. If the backdoor is enabled, the function returns the current time. However, if the backdoor is not enabled, the function returns a safe time.

This seemingly harmless code snippet can be exploited by an attacker to execute harmful commands through the use of the os.system() function. This example would delete all files on the system if the backdoor was activated.

Original References

The vulnerability was first reported by the maintainers at GitHub, who have removed the affected package versions and issued a security advisory. The following links provide more information on this vulnerability:

- CVE-2022-43306: [https://cve.mitre.org/cgi-bin/cvename.cgi?name=CVE-2022-43306]
- GitHub Security Advisory: [https://github.com/democritus-project/d8s-timer/security/advisories/GHSA-jvw2-wqgj-hwqh]
- PyPI Package: [https://pypi.org/project/d8s-timer/]
- Democritus-dates Package: [https://pypi.org/project/democritus-dates/]

To mitigate the potential risk posed by this vulnerability, users of the d8s-timer package are highly encouraged to update to the latest version, which has removed the insecure dependency on democritus-dates. Additionally, users should be cautious when using third-party dependencies and verify the integrity of these packages in their projects. Regularly auditing your codebase and dependencies can help detect and prevent such security vulnerabilities from affecting your systems.

Timeline

Published on: 11/07/2022 15:15:00 UTC
Last modified on: 11/08/2022 17:29:00 UTC