CVE-2016-2779
HighSummary
CVE-2016-2779 vulnerability in runuser in util-linux allows local users to escape to the parent session via a crafted TIOCSTI ioctl call, which pushes characters to the terminal's input buffer.
Risk Assessment
This vulnerability may allow local users to gain unauthorized access to other users' sessions, posing a significant security risk to the system.
Recommendation
It is recommended to update the util-linux package to the latest version to mitigate this vulnerability and restrict access to the runuser tool to trusted users.
Other vulnerabilities in util-linux
See all- CVE-2014-9114High
Blkid in util-linux before version 2.26rc-1 allows local users to execute arbitrary code.
- CVE-2015-5224Critical
The mkostemp function in login-utils in util-linux, when used incorrectly, allows remote attackers to cause file name collision and possibly other attacks.
- CVE-2026-13595Medium
A heap use-after-free vulnerability was found in the libblkid library of util-linux. During nested partition probing, a pointer to a parent partition entry becomes stale after array reallocation, allowing an attacker to read freed memory.
- CVE-2026-27456Medium
In util-linux prior to version 2.41.4, a TOCTOU vulnerability has been identified in the SUID binary /usr/bin/mount. When setting up loop devices, mount validates the source file path with user privileges but later re-canonicalizes and opens it with root privileges without verifying that the path has not been replaced. A local unprivileged user can replace the source file with a symlink pointing to any root-owned file or device.
- CVE-2026-3184Low
A flaw was found in util-linux. Improper hostname canonicalization in the `login(1)` utility, when invoked with the `-h` option, can modify the supplied remote hostname before setting `PAM_RHOST`. A remote attacker could exploit this by providing a specially crafted hostname, potentially bypassing host-based PAM access control rules that rely on fully qualified domain names.
- CVE-2025-14104Medium
A flaw was found in util-linux that allows a heap buffer overread when processing 256-byte usernames in the `setpwnam()` function. This affects SUID login-utils utilities that write to the password database.
Original NVD description (English source)
runuser in util-linux allows local users to escape to the parent session via a crafted TIOCSTI ioctl call, which pushes characters to the terminal's input buffer.