CVE-2019-15790: Apport reads PID files with elevated privileges

Published Apr 27, 2020
·
Updated

Apport reads and writes information on a crashed process to /proc/pid with elevated privileges. Apport then determines which user the crashed process belongs to by reading /proc/pid through getpidinfo() in data/apport. An unprivileged user could exploit this to read information about a privileged running process by exploiting PID recycling. This information could then be used to obtain ASLR offsets for a process with an existing memory corruption vulnerability. The initial fix introduced regressions in the Python Apport library due to a missing argument in Report.addprocenviron in apport/report.py. It also caused an autopkgtest failure when reading /proc/pid and with Python 2 compatibility by reading /proc maps. The initial and subsequent regression fixes are in 2.20.11-0ubuntu16, 2.20.11-0ubuntu8.6, 2.20.9-0ubuntu7.12, 2.20.1-0ubuntu2.22 and 2.14.1-0ubuntu3.29+esm3.

Affected Software

6 affected components
Apport Project Apport
Ubuntu=14.04
Ubuntu=16.04
Ubuntu=18.04
Ubuntu=19.04
Ubuntu=19.10

Event History

Apr 27, 2020
CVE Published
via MITRE·11:25 PM
Data Sourced
via MITRE·11:25 PM
DescriptionSeverityWeakness
Apr 28, 2020
Data Sourced
via NVD·12:15 AM
RemedyDescriptionSeverityWeaknessAffected Software
Jan 11, 2024
Data Sourced
via Debian·11:20 PM
DescriptionAffected Software
Data Sourced
via Launchpad·11:20 PM
Description
Nov 6, 2025
Data Sourced
via Ubuntu·07:41 PM
RemedyDescriptionSeverityAffected Software
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Frequently Asked Questions

1

What is the severity of CVE-2019-15790?

CVE-2019-15790 has been classified as a medium-severity vulnerability due to the potential for unprivileged users to read sensitive information.

2

How do I fix CVE-2019-15790?

To mitigate CVE-2019-15790, update Apport to the latest version provided by your operating system's package manager.

3

Which software is affected by CVE-2019-15790?

CVE-2019-15790 affects Ubuntu versions 14.04, 16.04, 18.04, 19.04, and 19.10 using the Apport project.

4

Can CVE-2019-15790 be exploited remotely?

CVE-2019-15790 does not allow for remote exploitation as it requires local access to the affected system.

5

What type of vulnerability is CVE-2019-15790?

CVE-2019-15790 is a local privilege escalation vulnerability that allows unprivileged users to access sensitive crash data.

Contact

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