Cyber Risks · Qualys Blog

Qualys TRU Uncovers 5 Local Privilege Escalation Flaws | Qualys

Summary: The Qualys Threat Research Unit identified five Local Privilege Escalation vulnerabilities in needrestart, a component installed by default on Ubuntu Server since version 21.04, tracked as CVE-2024-48990, CVE-2024-48991, CVE-2024-48992, CVE-2024-10224, and CVE-2024-11003. The flaws, present since interpreter support was added in needrestart version 0.8 in April 2014, let any unprivileged user execute arbitrary code as root by manipulating an attacker-controlled environment variable, and Qualys says it developed functional exploits for all five.

Why it matters: Any local user on an affected Ubuntu Server can reach root without user interaction, and needrestart runs automatically after APT operations including unattended upgrades - so the vulnerable code path is exercised on a routine schedule across a substantial number of deployments globally. Qualys warns other researchers may release working exploits shortly after this coordinated disclosure.

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Topics
Vulnerabilities & Patching
Mentions
CVE-2024-10224CVE-2024-11003CVE-2024-48990CVE-2024-48991CVE-2024-48992
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