CVE-2020-11934: Sandbox escape vulnerability via snapctl user-open (xdg-open)
First published: Wed Jul 29 2020(Updated: )
It was discovered that snapctl user-open allowed altering the $XDG_DATA_DIRS environment variable when calling the system xdg-open. OpenURL() in usersession/userd/launcher.go would alter $XDG_DATA_DIRS to append a path to a directory controlled by the calling snap. A malicious snap could exploit this to bypass intended access restrictions to control how the host system xdg-open script opens the URL and, for example, execute a script shipped with the snap without confinement. This issue did not affect Ubuntu Core systems. Fixed in snapd versions 2.45.1ubuntu0.2, 2.45.1+18.04.2 and 2.45.1+20.04.2.
Credit: security@ubuntu.com
| Affected Software | Affected Version | How to fix |
|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu | =16.04 | |
| Ubuntu | =18.04 | |
| Ubuntu | =19.10 | |
| Ubuntu | =20.04 |
Never miss a vulnerability like this again
Sign up to SecAlerts for real-time vulnerability data matched to your software, aggregated from hundreds of sources.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the severity of CVE-2020-11934?
CVE-2020-11934 has a medium severity rating due to the potential for unauthorized alteration of environment variables.
How do I fix CVE-2020-11934?
To mitigate CVE-2020-11934, users should update their Ubuntu system to the latest available patches for their version.
Which versions of Ubuntu are affected by CVE-2020-11934?
CVE-2020-11934 affects Ubuntu versions 16.04, 18.04, 19.10, and 20.04.
What type of vulnerability is CVE-2020-11934?
CVE-2020-11934 is classified as an exposure vulnerability that allows a malicious snap to modify environment variables.
Can CVE-2020-11934 be exploited remotely?
CVE-2020-11934 requires local access to the system, making it not directly exploitable remotely without prior access.
- agent/references
- agent/type
- agent/author
- agent/weakness
- agent/severity
- agent/title
- agent/description
- collector/mitre-cve
- source/MITRE
- agent/last-modified-date
- agent/event
- agent/first-publish-date
- agent/source
- agent/softwarecombine
- agent/tags
- collector/nvd-index
- agent/software-canonical-lookup-request
- vendor/canonical
- canonical/ubuntu
- version/ubuntu/16.04
- version/ubuntu/18.04
- version/ubuntu/19.10
- version/ubuntu/20.04