#VU15538 Privilege escalation in X.org Server - CVE-2018-14665

Vulnerability identifier: #VU15538

Vulnerability risk: Low

CVSSv4.0: 8.5 [CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:A/U:Clear]

CVE-ID: CVE-2018-14665

CWE-ID: CWE-264

Exploitation vector: Local

Exploit availability: Yes

Vulnerable software:
X.org Server
Server applications / Other server solutions

Vendor: X.org

Description

The vulnerability allows a local user to gain elevated privileges on the target system.

The vulnerability exists due to improper handling of two command-line options, namely -logfile and -modulepath. A local user can specify a '-modulepath' argument with an insecure path to create, overwrite or delete any files with root privileges.

Mitigation
Update to version 1.20.3.

Vulnerable software versions

X.org Server: 1.3.0 - 1.91.2

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External links
https://gitlab.freedesktop.org/xorg/xserver/commit/50c0cf885a6e91c0ea71fb49fa8f1b7c86fe330e
https://www.securepatterns.com/2018/10/cve-2018-14665-another-way-of.html
https://github.com/rapid7/metasploit-framework/blob/master/modules/exploits/multi/local/xorg_x11_sui...

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Q & A

Can this vulnerability be exploited remotely?

No. This vulnerability can be exploited locally. The attacker should have authentication credentials and successfully authenticate on the system.

Is there known malware, which exploits this vulnerability?

No. We are not aware of malware exploiting this vulnerability. However, a fully functional exploit for this vulnerability is available.