In Sudo before 1.9.12p2, the sudoedit (aka -e) feature mishandles extra arguments passed in the user-provided environment variables (SUDO_EDITOR, VISUAL, and EDITOR), allowing a local attacker to append arbitrary entries to the list of files to process. This can lead to privilege escalation. Affected versions are 1.8.0 through 1.9.12.p1. The problem exists because a user-specified editor may contain a – argument that defeats a protection mechanism, e.g., an EDITOR=vim – /path/to/extra/file value.
Weakness
The product does not properly assign, modify, track, or check privileges for an actor, creating an unintended sphere of control for that actor.
Affected Software
| Name | Vendor | Start Version | End Version |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sudo | Sudo_project | 1.8.0 (including) | 1.9.12 (excluding) |
| Sudo | Sudo_project | 1.9.12 (including) | 1.9.12 (including) |
| Sudo | Sudo_project | 1.9.12-p1 (including) | 1.9.12-p1 (including) |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 Extended Lifecycle Support | RedHat | sudo-0:1.8.6p3-29.el6_10.7 | * |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 | RedHat | sudo-0:1.8.23-10.el7_9.3 | * |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.4 Advanced Update Support | RedHat | sudo-0:1.8.19p2-12.el7_4.3 | * |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.6 Advanced Update Support(Disable again in 2026 - SPRHEL-7118) | RedHat | sudo-0:1.8.23-3.el7_6.3 | * |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.7 Advanced Update Support | RedHat | sudo-0:1.8.23-4.el7_7.4 | * |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.7 Telco Extended Update Support | RedHat | sudo-0:1.8.23-4.el7_7.4 | * |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.7 Update Services for SAP Solutions | RedHat | sudo-0:1.8.23-4.el7_7.4 | * |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 | RedHat | sudo-0:1.8.29-8.el8_7.1 | * |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.1 Update Services for SAP Solutions | RedHat | sudo-0:1.8.25p1-8.el8_1.3 | * |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.2 Advanced Update Support | RedHat | sudo-0:1.8.29-5.el8_2.2 | * |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.2 Telecommunications Update Service | RedHat | sudo-0:1.8.29-5.el8_2.2 | * |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.2 Update Services for SAP Solutions | RedHat | sudo-0:1.8.29-5.el8_2.2 | * |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.4 Extended Update Support | RedHat | sudo-0:1.8.29-7.el8_4.2 | * |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.6 Extended Update Support | RedHat | sudo-0:1.8.29-8.el8_6.1 | * |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 | RedHat | sudo-0:1.9.5p2-7.el9_1.1 | * |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 | RedHat | sudo-0:1.9.5p2-7.el9_1.1 | * |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9.0 Extended Update Support | RedHat | sudo-0:1.9.5p2-7.el9_0.2 | * |
| Red Hat Virtualization 4 for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 | RedHat | redhat-virtualization-host-0:4.5.3-202302150956_8.6 | * |
| Sudo | Ubuntu | bionic | * |
| Sudo | Ubuntu | devel | * |
| Sudo | Ubuntu | esm-infra-legacy/trusty | * |
| Sudo | Ubuntu | esm-infra/bionic | * |
| Sudo | Ubuntu | esm-infra/focal | * |
| Sudo | Ubuntu | esm-infra/xenial | * |
| Sudo | Ubuntu | focal | * |
| Sudo | Ubuntu | jammy | * |
| Sudo | Ubuntu | kinetic | * |
| Sudo | Ubuntu | lunar | * |
| Sudo | Ubuntu | trusty | * |
| Sudo | Ubuntu | trusty/esm | * |
| Sudo | Ubuntu | upstream | * |
| Sudo | Ubuntu | xenial | * |
Potential Mitigations
Related Attack Patterns
- https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/122.html
- https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/233.html
- https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/58.html
References
- http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/171644/sudo-1.9.12p1-Privilege-Escalation.html
- http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/172509/Sudoedit-Extra-Arguments-Privilege-Escalation.html
- http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/174234/Cisco-ThousandEyes-Enterprise-Agent-Virtual-Appliance-Arbitrary-File-Modification.html
- http://seclists.org/fulldisclosure/2023/Aug/21
- http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2023/01/19/1
- https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2023/01/msg00012.html
- https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/2QDGFCGAV5QRJCE6IXRXIS4XJHS57DDH/
- https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/G4YNBTTKTRT2ME3NTSXAPTOKYUE47XHZ/
- https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202305-12
- https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20230127-0015/
- https://support.apple.com/kb/HT213758
- https://www.debian.org/security/2023/dsa-5321
- https://www.sudo.ws/security/advisories/sudoedit_any/
- https://www.synacktiv.com/sites/default/files/2023-01/sudo-CVE-2023-22809.pdf
- http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/171644/sudo-1.9.12p1-Privilege-Escalation.html
- http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/172509/Sudoedit-Extra-Arguments-Privilege-Escalation.html
- http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/174234/Cisco-ThousandEyes-Enterprise-Agent-Virtual-Appliance-Arbitrary-File-Modification.html
- http://seclists.org/fulldisclosure/2023/Aug/21
- http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2023/01/19/1
- https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2023/01/msg00012.html
- https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/2QDGFCGAV5QRJCE6IXRXIS4XJHS57DDH/
- https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/G4YNBTTKTRT2ME3NTSXAPTOKYUE47XHZ/
- https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202305-12
- https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20230127-0015/
- https://support.apple.com/kb/HT213758
- https://www.debian.org/security/2023/dsa-5321
- https://www.sudo.ws/security/advisories/sudoedit_any/
- https://www.synacktiv.com/sites/default/files/2023-01/sudo-CVE-2023-22809.pdf