CVE-2020-1712

Local service crash via stale PolicyKit callback data

Published Mar 31, 2020 · Updated Jun 9, 2025

Heap use-after-free in systemd before 245-rc1 allows local users to crash services or execute code through crafted D-Bus messages. bus_verify_polkit_async caches callback userdata while a deferred event can free the referenced object before authorization completes. systemd-machined exposes this path to unprivileged local users; service crashes are confirmed, while code execution and privilege elevation remain unproven.

CVSS severity7.8
High
EPSS probability0.46%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
Coverage for this vulnerability

See if you're affected

Explore vulnerability checks for your environment with Hinoki.

Book a demo

Summary

What happened

Heap use-after-free in systemd before 245-rc1 allows local users to crash services or execute code through crafted D-Bus messages. bus_verify_polkit_async caches callback userdata while a deferred event can free the referenced object before authorization completes. systemd-machined exposes this path to unprivileged local users; service crashes are confirmed, while code execution and privilege elevation remain unproven.

The record

CVE
CVE-2020-1712
Published
Mar 31, 2020
Updated
Jun 9, 2025
Vendor
systemd
Product
systemd
Classifications
CWE-416, T1068
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Mar 31, 2020CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Jun 9, 2025Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

Compare your product and version with the public record. A matching version still requires validation against your environment.

Is a vulnerable build present?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=before v245-rc1

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

systemd · systemdversion=before v245-rc1

Published CVSS scores

4.6NIST NVDAV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P
7.8Red Hat, Inc.CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

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
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-416Use After Free
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

See the directory against your own environment.

Your stack

Check the software in your environment

Book a demo to see how Hinoki identifies affected software and validates exploitability in your environment.

Book a demo