CVE-2019-19728

Root task execution via failed UID switching

Published Jan 13, 2020 · Updated Aug 5, 2024

Privilege management in SchedMD Slurm before 18.08.9 and 19.x before 19.05.5 allows local users with root privileges to launch tasks as root. In src/srun/libsrun/srun_job.c, create_srun_job logs a warning when _become_user fails, then continues creating the job step instead of aborting. The root-only srun --uid option and a race between successive account lookup calls are required; failed identity switching leaves launched tasks running as root.

CVSS severity7.5
High
EPSS probability1.30%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Privilege management in SchedMD Slurm before 18.08.9 and 19.x before 19.05.5 allows local users with root privileges to launch tasks as root. In src/srun/libsrun/srun_job.c, create_srun_job logs a warning when _become_user fails, then continues creating the job step instead of aborting. The root-only srun --uid option and a race between successive account lookup calls are required; failed identity switching leaves launched tasks running as root.

The record

CVE
CVE-2019-19728
Published
Jan 13, 2020
Updated
Aug 5, 2024
Vendor
Unknown vendor
Product
Unknown product
Classifications
CWE-269, CAPEC-58, CAPEC-233, CAPEC-122, T1068
Attack vector
local
Privileges
admin

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Jan 13, 2020CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Aug 5, 2024Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

Affected buildAffected product and version details are unavailable.

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesadmin

What is affected?

Affected products and versions are unavailable in this record.

Published CVSS scores

7.5NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
6.7SUSECVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
6.0NIST NVDAV:N/AC:M/Au:S/C:P/I:P/A:P

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesadmin
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-269Improper Privilege Management
CAPEC-58Restful Privilege Elevation
CAPEC-233Privilege Escalation
CAPEC-122Privilege Abuse
T1068Exploitation for Privilege Escalation

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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