(Fwd) SECURITY ALERT: Password protection bug in Netscape 2.0b

[Peter Trei]

Haven't had time to test this myself.

Peter Trei

------- Forwarded Message Follows -------
Date:          Mon, 18 Dec 95 17:18:28
From:          <lstein at genome.wi.mit.edu>
Subject:       SECURITY ALERT: Password protection bug in Netscape 2.0b3
To:            www-security at ns2.rutgers.edu, jcarroll at redman.canada.dg.com
Cc:            tara at linkage.cpmc.columbia.edu

A potentially serious bug has just come to my attention concerning the
handling of password-protected pages accessed via Netscape 2.0b3.
Apparently when you type in the password to access a protected document
Netscape stores the password in a local hidden file (in one of the .db
files created in the .netscape directory on UNIX systems, and in the
Netscape Preferences file on Macintoshes).  This password is then used for
accessing the document during subsequent accesses.  The problem is that
Netscape does not delete the stored password when the program quits.

The problem has been reproduced on Unix and Macintosh platforms.  I haven't
tried the Windows implementation yet, but I suspect the same problem
exists.

This leads to the following behavior:

        1) Open up Netscape and access a password-protected document.
        2) Quit Netscape
        3) Start Netscape again and try to retrieve the document.  When the
                password-entry dialog comes up, click "Cancel".
        4) Try to access the document a second time.  Now Netscape lets you
                in without asking for the password!

On Unix systems, this means that if you go over to a associate's machine to
show him a protected document, Netscape will record your typed in password
for posterity.  Your associate now has full access to this page.

The situation is particularly dangerous on PCs in a shared "computer lab"
environment.  Everybody who uses Netscape unwittingly makes his passwords
available to all other users.

Please let me know if anyone finds out more about this problem.  I'm going
to add it to the WWW security FAQ.

Lincoln

========================================================================
Lincoln Stein, M.D.,Ph.D.                       lstein at genome.wi.mit.edu
Director: Informatics Core
MIT Genome Center                               (617) 252-1916
Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research     (617) 252-1902 FAX
One Kendall Square
Cambridge, MA 02139
=================http://www-genome.wi.mit.edu/~lstein====================