CGI_WWWBOARD_PASSWD_EXPLOIT

A vulnerability in the default installation of the WWWBoard package allows remote attackers to steal the encrypted password of the WWWBoard admin. This allows the remote attackers to mount an off-line dictionary and brute force attack against the password. The WWWBoard package is a popular web based discussion board by Matt Wright. The administration area of the WWWBoard package requires a username and password for authentication. By default, the WWWBoard package uses the username 'WebAdmin' and the password 'WebBoard'.

If the administrator changes the password the WWWBoard software by default will write the new password encrypted using crypt(3) in the file 'passwd.txt' in the same directory where the rest of the WWWBoard files are stored. This file must be readable and writable by the user id the WWWBoard package runs under. This is normally the same userid the web server runs under.

Since the directory where the WWWBoard files are stores is under the web root directory and remote client may retrieve file from it. This allows a remote malicious user to download the 'passwd.txt' file and to mount an attack against the password.