Skip to main content
VulnerabilityPublished Updated

CVE-2019-3844: [freedesktop.org] systemd · CWE-268

Affects [freedesktop.org] systemdSource CVE Database V5

0

Not known to be exploited · public exploit available (Exploit-DB) · CVSS 4.5 Medium.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 09:15 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 59% 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
Debiandebian/systemdpkg:deb/debian/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

To mitigate this vulnerability, European organizations should: 1) Upgrade systemd to a version later than 242 where this vulnerability is patched. 2) Restrict local user access and enforce strict user account management policies to minimize the number of users who can execute or manipulate SUID binaries. 3) Audit and monitor usage of SUID binaries and transient user/group assignments to detect anomalous behavior related to privilege escalation attempts. 4) Implement mandatory access controls (e.g., SELinux, AppArmor) to limit the capabilities of services using DynamicUser, reducing the risk of privilege escalation via group ID recycling. 5) Regularly review and rotate group IDs and transient user assignments to minimize the window of opportunity for exploitation. 6) Employ comprehensive logging and alerting on systemd service executions and changes to permissions or ownership of critical binaries and files. These steps go beyond generic advice by focusing on systemd-specific configurations and local privilege management.

Description

It was discovered that a systemd service that uses DynamicUser property can get new privileges through the execution of SUID binaries, which would allow to create binaries owned by the service transient group with the setgid bit set. A local attacker may use this flaw to access resources that will be owned by a potentially different service in the future, when the GID will be recycled.

References

Community reviews

Loading reviews…