Service hang via blocking FIFO report read
Published Jun 11, 2021 · Updated Nov 3, 2025
Improper input validation in Canonical Apport allows local users to hang crash processing by substituting a FIFO for a report file. The data/apport handler opens an attacker-controlled .crash report path with a blocking read and waits indefinitely when the path is a FIFO without a writer. Local low-privileged access and control of a report pathname are required; alone the flaw interrupts crash handling, while a public exploit chains the stall with separate flaws for privilege escalation.
Summary
What happened
Improper input validation in Canonical Apport allows local users to hang crash processing by substituting a FIFO for a report file. The data/apport handler opens an attacker-controlled .crash report path with a blocking read and waits indefinitely when the path is a FIFO without a writer. Local low-privileged access and control of a report pathname are required; alone the flaw interrupts crash handling, while a public exploit chains the stall with separate flaws for privilege escalation.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2021-25684
- Published
- Jun 11, 2021
- Updated
- Nov 3, 2025
- Vendor
- Canonical
- Product
- Apport
- Classifications
- CWE-20, T1499
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Jun 11, 2021CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Nov 3, 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.
- Affected versionversion=2.20.11-0ubuntu27 <2.20.11-0ubuntu27.16
- Affected versionversion=2.20.11-0ubuntu50 <2.20.11-0ubuntu50.5
- Affected versionversion=2.20.1 <2.20.1-0ubuntu2.30
- Affected versionversion=2.20.9 <2.20.9-0ubuntu7.23
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
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.
Public exploit references
- Aleph Security Apport LPE proof of conceptfunctional · demonstrated
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