CVE-2019-13272
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Description
In the Linux kernel before 5.1.17, ptrace_link in kernel/ptrace.c mishandles the recording of the credentials of a process that wants to create a ptrace relationship, which allows local users to obtain root access by leveraging certain scenarios with a parent-child process relationship, where a parent drops privileges and calls execve (potentially allowing control by an attacker). One contributing factor is an object lifetime issue (which can also cause a panic). Another contributing factor is incorrect marking of a ptrace relationship as privileged, which is exploitable through (for example) Polkit's pkexec helper with PTRACE_TRACEME. NOTE: SELinux deny_ptrace might be a usable workaround in some environments.
Official description from the CVE record, published by mitre. Copyright © 1999-2026 The MITRE Corporation. See /security/cve/legal for the CVE license. View the record on cve.org
Key data
CVSS 3.1 High 7.8
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Attack vector: Local
The attacker needs local access to the system, or to trick a user into running something.
Attack complexity: Low
No special conditions are needed. The attack can be repeated at will.
Privileges required: Low
A basic user account is needed.
User interaction: None
No action from any user is needed.
Scope: Unchanged
The impact stays within the vulnerable component.
Confidentiality impact: High
Serious or total effect on the secrecy of data.
Integrity impact: High
Serious or total effect on the trustworthiness of data.
Availability impact: High
Serious or total effect on availability.
| Metric | Value | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Attack vector | Local | The attacker needs local access to the system, or to trick a user into running something. |
| Attack complexity | Low | No special conditions are needed. The attack can be repeated at will. |
| Privileges required | Low | A basic user account is needed. |
| User interaction | None | No action from any user is needed. |
| Scope | Unchanged | The impact stays within the vulnerable component. |
| Confidentiality impact | High | Serious or total effect on the secrecy of data. |
| Integrity impact | High | Serious or total effect on the trustworthiness of data. |
| Availability impact | High | Serious or total effect on availability. |
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EPSS
- Score
- 0.52199 (52.2% probability)
- Percentile
- 99.0%
- Scores of
- Nov 10, 2026
- Model
- v2026.06.15
CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities
- Name in the catalog
- Linux Kernel Improper Privilege Management Vulnerability
- Added to the catalog
- Dec 10, 2021
- Federal due date
- Jun 10, 2022
CISA assessment as of Feb 4, 2025
- Exploitation
- Recorded by CISA as active
- Automatable
- no
- Technical impact
- total
References
- packetstormsecurity.com/files/153663/Linux-PTRACE_TRACEME-B…
- bugs.chromium.org/p/project-zero/issues/detail?id=1903
- cdn.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v5.x/ChangeLog-5.1.17
- github.com/torvalds/linux/commit/6994eefb0053799d2e07cd140d…
- git.kernel.org/cgit/linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git/com…
- bugzilla.suse.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1140671
- bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1730895
- FEDORA-2019-a95015e60f (lists.fedoraproject.org)vendor-advisory
- DSA-4484 (debian.org)vendor-advisory
- 20190722 [SECURITY] [DSA 4484-1] linux security update (seclists.org)mailing-list
- 20190722 [slackware-security] Slackware 14.2 kernel (SSA:2019-202-01) (seclists.org)mailing-list
- [debian-lts-announce] 20190723 [SECURITY] [DLA 1862-1] linux security update (lists.debian.org)mailing-list
- [debian-lts-announce] 20190723 [SECURITY] [DLA 1863-1] linux-4.9 security update (lists.debian.org)mailing-list
- packetstormsecurity.com/files/153702/Slackware-Security-Adv…
- security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20190806-0001
- RHSA-2019:2405 (access.redhat.com)vendor-advisory
- RHSA-2019:2411 (access.redhat.com)vendor-advisory
- USN-4093-1 (usn.ubuntu.com)vendor-advisory
- USN-4094-1 (usn.ubuntu.com)vendor-advisory
- USN-4095-1 (usn.ubuntu.com)vendor-advisory
- packetstormsecurity.com/files/154245/Kernel-Live-Patch-Secu…
- support.f5.com/csp/article/K91025336
- USN-4117-1 (usn.ubuntu.com)vendor-advisory
- USN-4118-1 (usn.ubuntu.com)vendor-advisory
- RHSA-2019:2809 (access.redhat.com)vendor-advisory
- support.f5.com/csp/article/K91025336?utm_source=f5support&a…
- packetstormsecurity.com/files/154957/Linux-Polkit-pkexec-He…
- packetstormsecurity.com/files/156929/Linux-PTRACE_TRACEME-L…
- packetstormsecurity.com/files/165051/Linux-Kernel-5.1.x-PTR…
Timeline
- ID reserved
- Record published
- Added to CISA KEV
- Record last updated
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Data from the CVE Program (MITRE), CISA KEV and FIRST EPSS. CVSS is owned by FIRST and used by permission. Not affiliated with or endorsed by MITRE, CISA or FIRST. Data as of Nov 10, 2026, 19:34 UTC. Sources and licenses