[Bug 521533] Re: Okular stores form data in a different directory (possible leak of private data)

Bug Watch Updater 521533 at bugs.launchpad.net
Fri Oct 12 21:45:31 UTC 2012


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On 2011-03-01T01:04:35+00:00 Warren Turkal wrote:

Created attachment 57582
IRS form W9

Version:           0.11.1 (using KDE 4.5.3) 
OS:                Linux

I just realized that Okular is storing my form data in a file that is
not the PDF itself. This file is hard to find and means that my social
security number is stored in some random file on my machine if I fill
out an IRS form W9 with Okular. This seems less than ideal from a UX
perspective.

I could not find a way to delete the data short of deleting the files
from the command line. Not storing the data with the PDF is really user
hostile in my opinion.

Also, when I "Save As..." a PDF with filled out forms, only the first
field appears to be saved in the new PDF. For the record, Evince appears
to have this same bug. This may be an indication of a bug in the poppler
library.

Reproducible: Always

Steps to Reproduce:
1. Open fw9.pdf IRS form.
2. View forms
3. Type in data
4. Close Okular.
5. look in ~/.kde/share/apps/okular/docdata/

Actual Results:  
There are files containing potentially private data in that directory, and it's hard for a casual user to delete them.

Expected Results:  
The user should be able to "Save as..." to a new file and just have a copy of the PDF with the filled in form data.

OS: Linux (x86_64) release 2.6.37-1-amd64
Compiler: cc

Reply at:
https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/kdegraphics/+bug/521533/comments/3

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On 2011-04-04T03:11:36+00:00 Pickled-kde wrote:

I just noticed the same issue. I had stored some filled out forms on an
encrypted drive. I ran into a bug where the fields I entered didn't
weren't being displayed after being saved (not even an empty field). I
figured the file had been corrupted so I copied the original blank form
over the filled out one. When I opened it all the information I had
entered into the form was there despite the file having been
overwritten. After looking around I found it had been written to
.kde/share/apps/okular/docdata - on an unencrypted drive. This was quite
startling to me and not what I expected.

I can understand if there are limitations to the PDF format that prevent
you from storing the data in the PDF file itself, however you should at
least inform the user of where the data is being stored before writing
it. Preferably, it should be stored in the same directory as the PDF as
well.

Reply at:
https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/kdegraphics/+bug/521533/comments/4

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On 2011-04-10T20:04:21+00:00 Pickled-kde wrote:

Another limitation of doing it this way is that it appears impossible to
have multiple copies of the same form filled out differently, even if
saved in different directories. For example, I filled out my tax forms,
and then created a new directory with the copied blank forms to do my
girlfriend's taxes. However, when I opened them they had my value stored
in them.

The workaround was to rename the forms and then edit them, but it would
match user expectations better if each copy of the form had it's own set
of values.

Finally, I do think the priority on this bug should be higher as it
relates to user privacy/security.

Reply at:
https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/kdegraphics/+bug/521533/comments/5

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On 2012-01-05T05:26:15+00:00 Jordonwii wrote:

Agree with #2. I know the devs are aware of this because there are other
issues regarding the opening files and having the form remain being
filled out (intentional feature). However, unsure if they are aware of
the security implications of this. Developers have any comment?

Reply at:
https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/kdegraphics/+bug/521533/comments/6

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On 2012-07-25T21:06:45+00:00 James Paige wrote:

I ran into this problem too recently. In one department at my workplace,
I set up a computer where employees can read PDFs and fill out PDF
forms. There is one particular form that each of them has to fill out
every two weeks. I discovered that I could avoid the problem of each
person seeing (and having to delete) the details entered by the previous
person by renaming the pdf file to a random temporary filename before
opening it. Then I realized that by serving the pdf file from a local
webserver, and having them open the pdf from a link in firefox, I would
get the random temporary filename for free without having to script it.
It is certainly a kludge, but it seems pretty usable for now :)

Reply at:
https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/kdegraphics/+bug/521533/comments/7

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On 2012-10-12T21:18:31+00:00 Wfp46n97wf wrote:

Besides form data also annotations were served in that extra docdata xml
file.

For annotations this has been fixed recently:
https://bugs.kde.org/show_bug.cgi?id=151614

I haven't had time yet to read the whole lengthy discussion there or to
install the new version to see whether /how it affects form data.

Reply at:
https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/kdegraphics/+bug/521533/comments/8


** Changed in: kdegraphics
       Status: Unknown => New

** Changed in: kdegraphics
   Importance: Unknown => Medium

** Bug watch added: KDE Bug Tracking System #151614
   https://bugs.kde.org/show_bug.cgi?id=151614

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Title:
  Okular stores form data in a different directory (possible leak of
  private data)

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