Hello,
on http://lists.suse.com/archive/suse-security/2003-Dec/0051.html I read
that the SuSE 9.0 update kernel contains Stack Overflow Protection. I
tested this with a short example from an article in the German computer
magazine c't ("Das Sicherheitsloch", c't 23/2001, p. 216)
1 void function(int a, int b, int c) {
2 char buffer1[8];
3 char buffer2[16];
4 int *ret;
5
6 ret = buffer1 + 12;
7 (*ret) += 8;
8 }
9
10 void main() {
11 int x;
12
13 x = 0;
14 function(1,2,3);
15 x = 1;
16 printf("%d\n",x);
17 }
On SuSE 9.0 this produces "1", which is correct, on an old machine it
produces "0", which is incorrect.
My questions are now:
1. Does this protection have any disadvantages?
2. Will it be included in future versions of the vanilla kernel?
3. Why is this a "hidden feature"? Why doesn't SuSE let the people know
that they've included this stack overflow protection?
Regards,
Bernhard
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