Skip to main content
VulnerabilityPublished Updated

CVE-2019-3843: [freedesktop.org] systemd · CWE-266

Affects [freedesktop.org] systemdSource CVE Database V5

0

Public exploit available (Exploit-DB) · CVSS 4.5 Medium.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 17:16 UTC

CVSS 3.0 base score
4.5Medium
How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.
EPSS
0.9% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 60% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L

Exploitation evidence

t = 0 is the CVE’s publication on cve.org

  1. Disclosed: evidence found.

    CVE published 26 Apr 2019

  2. Detectable: no evidence on record.

    No public nuclei template indexed

  3. Exploited in the wild: no evidence on record.

    Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation

  4. Observed by OffSeq Mirage: no evidence on record.

    No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

Timeline

  1. CVE ID reserved

    by Red Hat, Inc.

    , 113 days before disclosure

  2. CVE published

    on cve.org

    , t = 0

  3. First Exploit-DB entry (opens in a new tab)

    systemd - DynamicUser can Create setuid Binaries when Assisted by Another Process

    , the same day as disclosure

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 26 Oct 2026.

What to do

Affected software

ProductAffectedFixed in
Freedesktop.orgfreedesktop.org/systemdpkg:rpm/freedesktop.org/systemdOther threatsAffected
  • =242
Fixed in–

Check your own hosts for these packages with threat-finder (opens in a new tab), our free open-source scanner.

AI-suggested

European organizations should first verify if their Linux systems are running systemd version 242 or other vulnerable versions. Immediate mitigation includes upgrading systemd to a patched version where this vulnerability is fixed, typically versions released after April 2019. If upgrading is not immediately possible, organizations should audit services using the DynamicUser property and avoid creating SUID/SGID binaries within these services. Implement strict local access controls and monitoring to detect unusual creation or execution of SUID/SGID binaries. Employ mandatory access control systems such as SELinux or AppArmor to restrict the capabilities of transient users and services. Regularly review and rotate UIDs/GIDs and clean up orphaned SUID/SGID binaries. Additionally, enhance logging and alerting for privilege escalation attempts and conduct periodic security assessments focusing on local privilege escalation vectors. Finally, educate system administrators about the risks of DynamicUser misuse and enforce least privilege principles in service configurations.

Description

It was discovered that a systemd service that uses DynamicUser property can create a SUID/SGID binary that would be allowed to run as the transient service UID/GID even after the service is terminated. A local attacker may use this flaw to access resources that will be owned by a potentially different service in the future, when the UID/GID will be recycled.

References

Community reviews

Loading reviews…