Store modification via retained failed-build permissions
Published Jun 27, 2025 · Updated Jun 27, 2025
Incorrect permissions in failed build handling in Nix allow local users to modify content outside the build sandbox. When a derivation exits unsuccessfully, the daemon moves its output directory into the store without revoking builder-controlled permissions, leaving retained file descriptors writable. A local user must submit an untrusted fixed-output derivation and coordinate an external process; the resulting store write is a building block in a root-escalation chain.
Summary
What happened
Incorrect permissions in failed build handling in Nix allow local users to modify content outside the build sandbox. When a derivation exits unsuccessfully, the daemon moves its output directory into the store without revoking builder-controlled permissions, leaving retained file descriptors writable. A local user must submit an untrusted fixed-output derivation and coordinate an external process; the resulting store write is a building block in a root-escalation chain.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2025-52992
- Published
- Jun 27, 2025
- Updated
- Jun 27, 2025
- Vendor
- NixOS
- Product
- Nix
- Classifications
- CWE-732, T1068
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Jun 27, 2025CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Jun 27, 2025Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
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Is a vulnerable build present?
Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.
- Affected versionversion=0 <2.24.15
- Affected versionversion=2.25.0 <2.26.4
- Affected versionversion=2.27.0 <2.28.4
- Affected versionversion=2.29.0 <2.29.1
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
No CVSS assessment is available in this record.
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
- Snyk failed-build store-write 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
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