CVE-2021-44731: snapd could be made to escalate privileges and run programs as administrator

Published Feb 17, 2022
·
Updated

A race condition existed in the snapd 2.54.2 snap-confine binary when preparing a private mount namespace for a snap. This could allow a local attacker to gain root privileges by bind-mounting their own contents inside the snap's private mount namespace and causing snap-confine to execute arbitrary code and hence gain privilege escalation. Fixed in snapd versions 2.54.3+18.04, 2.54.3+20.04 and 2.54.3+21.10.1

Affected Software

9 affected componentsFixes available
Canonical snapd<=2.54.2
Canonical Ubuntu Linux=18.04
Canonical Ubuntu Linux=20.04
Canonical Ubuntu Linux=21.10
Fedoraproject Fedora=34
Fedoraproject Fedora=35
Debian Debian Linux=10.0
Debian Debian Linux=11.0
debian/snapd
2.49-1+deb11u22.57.6-12.68.3-32.71-32.73-3

Event History

Feb 17, 2022
CVE Published
via MITRE·12:00 AM
Data Sourced
via MITRE·12:00 AM
DescriptionSeverityWeakness
Feb 24, 2026
Data Sourced
via Ubuntu·09:07 PM
RemedyDescriptionSeverityAffected Software
Data Sourced
via Launchpad·09:09 PM
Description
Feb 27, 2026
Data Sourced
via Debian·09:11 PM
DescriptionAffected Software
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Frequently Asked Questions

1

What is CVE-2021-44731?

CVE-2021-44731 is a vulnerability that existed in the snapd 2.54.2 snap-confine binary when preparing a private mount namespace for a snap, allowing a local attacker to gain root privileges.

2

How severe is CVE-2021-44731?

CVE-2021-44731 has a severity score of 7.8 (high).

3

Which software versions are affected by CVE-2021-44731?

The affected software versions include snapd 2.37.4-1+deb10u1, 2.37.4-1+deb10u3, 2.49-1+deb11u2, 2.57.6-1, and 2.60.2-1 on Debian, as well as snapd 2.54.3+18.04 on Ubuntu 18.04 LTS, snapd 2.54.3+20.04 on Ubuntu 20.04 LTS, snapd 2.54.3+21.10.1 on Ubuntu 21.10, and snapd 2.54.3 (upstream version) on Ubuntu (all versions).

4

How can I fix CVE-2021-44731?

To fix CVE-2021-44731, update snapd to version 2.54.3+18.04 on Ubuntu 18.04 LTS, 2.54.3+20.04 on Ubuntu 20.04 LTS, 2.54.3+21.10.1 on Ubuntu 21.10, or 2.54.3 (upstream version) on Ubuntu (all versions). For Debian, update to snapd versions 2.37.4-1+deb10u1, 2.37.4-1+deb10u3, 2.49-1+deb11u2, 2.57.6-1, or 2.60.2-1.

5

Where can I find more information about CVE-2021-44731?

You can find more information about CVE-2021-44731 at the following references: [1] http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/170176/snap-confine-must_mkdir_and_open_with_perms-Race-Condition.html [2] http://seclists.org/fulldisclosure/2022/Dec/4 [3] http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2022/02/18/2

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