CVE-2024-10963: Improper Authentication
A flaw was found in pam_access, where certain rules in its configuration file are mistakenly treated as hostnames. This vulnerability allows attackers to trick the system by pretending to be a trusted hostname, gaining unauthorized access. This issue poses a risk for systems that rely on this feature to control who can access certain services or terminals.
AI Analysis
Technical Summary
CVE-2024-10963 is a vulnerability in the pam_access module of PAM in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 where improper hostname interpretation can lead to an access control bypass. PAM is used to configure authentication policies without recompiling programs. The flaw allows bypassing access controls due to incorrect handling of hostnames. Red Hat has issued security advisories RHSA-2024:10244 and RHSA-2024:10232 providing updated pam packages that fix this issue. The updates are available for multiple architectures including x86_64, s390x, ppc64le, and aarch64, covering standard, Extended Update Support, and Update Services for SAP Solutions variants of RHEL 9. The vendor rates this vulnerability as important and recommends applying the provided updates. No active exploitation has been reported.
Potential Impact
The vulnerability allows an attacker to bypass access control mechanisms in PAM due to improper hostname interpretation in pam_access. This could potentially allow unauthorized access to systems relying on PAM for authentication policies. However, there are no reports of known exploits in the wild at this time. The impact is rated as important by Red Hat, indicating a significant security risk if left unpatched.
Mitigation Recommendations
Red Hat has released official security updates for pam version 1.5.1 that address this vulnerability. Users of Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 and its variants should apply the updates as detailed in Red Hat advisories RHSA-2024:10244 and RHSA-2024:10232. The updates are available for multiple architectures and product variants. Refer to https://access.redhat.com/articles/11258 for detailed update instructions. Applying these updates is the recommended and effective mitigation. No additional vendor-recommended mitigations or workarounds are indicated.
CVE-2024-10963: Improper Authentication
Description
A flaw was found in pam_access, where certain rules in its configuration file are mistakenly treated as hostnames. This vulnerability allows attackers to trick the system by pretending to be a trusted hostname, gaining unauthorized access. This issue poses a risk for systems that rely on this feature to control who can access certain services or terminals.
CVSS v3.1
Score 7.4high
Affected software
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Weaknesses
AI-Powered Analysis
Machine-generated threat intelligence
Technical Analysis
CVE-2024-10963 is a vulnerability in the pam_access module of PAM in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 where improper hostname interpretation can lead to an access control bypass. PAM is used to configure authentication policies without recompiling programs. The flaw allows bypassing access controls due to incorrect handling of hostnames. Red Hat has issued security advisories RHSA-2024:10244 and RHSA-2024:10232 providing updated pam packages that fix this issue. The updates are available for multiple architectures including x86_64, s390x, ppc64le, and aarch64, covering standard, Extended Update Support, and Update Services for SAP Solutions variants of RHEL 9. The vendor rates this vulnerability as important and recommends applying the provided updates. No active exploitation has been reported.
Potential Impact
The vulnerability allows an attacker to bypass access control mechanisms in PAM due to improper hostname interpretation in pam_access. This could potentially allow unauthorized access to systems relying on PAM for authentication policies. However, there are no reports of known exploits in the wild at this time. The impact is rated as important by Red Hat, indicating a significant security risk if left unpatched.
Mitigation Recommendations
Red Hat has released official security updates for pam version 1.5.1 that address this vulnerability. Users of Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 and its variants should apply the updates as detailed in Red Hat advisories RHSA-2024:10244 and RHSA-2024:10232. The updates are available for multiple architectures and product variants. Refer to https://access.redhat.com/articles/11258 for detailed update instructions. Applying these updates is the recommended and effective mitigation. No additional vendor-recommended mitigations or workarounds are indicated.
Technical Details
- Gcve Source
- db.gcve.eu
- Csaf Category
- csaf_security_advisory
- Csaf Version
- 2.0
- Publisher
- Red Hat Product Security
- Advisory Id
- RHSA-2024:10244
- Cve Count
- 1
Threat ID: 6a3da2014853345fc18371d0
Added to database: 06/25/2026, 21:47:45 UTC
Last enriched: 08/21/2026, 16:27:43 UTC
Last updated: 09/10/2026, 19:36:47 UTC
Views: 61
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