CVE-2017-5397 — The cache directory on the local file system is set to be world writable

The cache directory on the local file system is set to be world writable. Firefox defaults to extracting libraries from this cache. This allows for the possibility of an installed malicious application or tools with write access to the file system to replace files used by Firefox

01What is this vulnerability?

The cache directory on the local file system is set to be world writable. Firefox defaults to extracting libraries from this cache. This allows for the possibility of an installed malicious application or tools with write access to the file system to replace files used by Firefox with their own versions. This vulnerability affects Firefox < 51.0.3.

02Affected products

Vendor	Product	Versions
Mozilla	Firefox	unspecified

03Active exploitation status

Not currently listed on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog. EPSS is the best forward-looking signal — see the EPSS row above.

04Recommended remediation

• Patch to a fixed version listed in the vendor advisory (see references below).
• Mitigate with WAF rules, network egress filters, or feature flags where the patch is not yet available.
• Hunt historical logs for exploitation indicators — see Detection signatures below.

05Technical details

For the full vendor write-up, exploit chains, and reference implementations, see the references list in section 09.

06Detection signatures

Ask SARA in chat to draft a starting detection for this CVE in your stack of choice.

07Related CVEs

No directly-cited follow-up CVEs in the KB record for this advisory. The references list in section 09 carries the vendor cross-references.

08Timeline

• Published: 2018-06-11T21:00:00.000Z
• Last modified: 2024-08-05T14:55:35.905Z

09References

• bugzilla.mozilla.org — https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1337304
• www.securityfocus.com — http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/96144
• www.mozilla.org — https://www.mozilla.org/security/advisories/mfsa2017-04/