Local root access via brute-forced unlock PIN
Published Sep 8, 2022 · Updated Aug 3, 2024
Improper privilege management in UBports Ubuntu Touch 16.04 allows local users to obtain a privileged shell by brute-forcing a device PIN. The device reuses the four-digit screen-unlock passcode as the sudo password, while the demonstrated sudo authentication path lacks rate limiting. A regular user or malicious local application can try all PIN values and invoke sudo su as root, although the CVE is disputed because a third party states that the attack cannot be executed as demonstrated.
Summary
What happened
Improper privilege management in UBports Ubuntu Touch 16.04 allows local users to obtain a privileged shell by brute-forcing a device PIN. The device reuses the four-digit screen-unlock passcode as the sudo password, while the demonstrated sudo authentication path lacks rate limiting. A regular user or malicious local application can try all PIN values and invoke sudo su as root, although the CVE is disputed because a third party states that the attack cannot be executed as demonstrated.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2022-40297
- Published
- Sep 8, 2022
- Updated
- Aug 3, 2024
- Vendor
- Unknown vendor
- Product
- Unknown product
- Classifications
- CWE-269, T1548.003, T1110.001
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Sep 8, 2022CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Aug 3, 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?
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Affected products and versions are unavailable in this record.
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.
Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
- Ubuntu Touch PIN privilege-escalation proof of conceptproof of concept · unverified
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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