CVE-2020-4270Public exploit

Root privilege escalation via writable cron script

Published Apr 15, 2020 · Updated Sep 17, 2024

Incorrect default permissions in QRadar's run-result-reader.sh in IBM QRadar 7.3.0 through 7.3.3 Patch 2 allow local users to gain root privileges. The script is owned by nobody but is launched every 20 minutes from root's crontab, so nobody-context processes can replace its commands. Access as the nobody account is required; modified commands then execute as root and permit full control of the host.

CVSS severity8.4
High
EPSS probability0.49%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Incorrect default permissions in QRadar's run-result-reader.sh in IBM QRadar 7.3.0 through 7.3.3 Patch 2 allow local users to gain root privileges. The script is owned by nobody but is launched every 20 minutes from root's crontab, so nobody-context processes can replace its commands. Access as the nobody account is required; modified commands then execute as root and permit full control of the host.

The record

CVE
CVE-2020-4270
Published
Apr 15, 2020
Updated
Sep 17, 2024
Vendor
Unknown vendor
Product
Unknown product
Classifications
CWE-276, T1574.010
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Apr 15, 2020CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Sep 17, 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 privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

Affected products and versions are unavailable in this record.

Published CVSS scores

7.8NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
4.6NIST NVDAV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P
8.4IBM CorporationCVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/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 exploitPublished

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-276Incorrect Default Permissions
T1574.010Services File Permissions Weakness

Public exploit references

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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