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Debian LinuxOperating system · Debian

CVE-2000-0867

HIGH · 7.2 CVSS v2.0 Published 2000-11-14
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
77/100
Remediation priority · High
No privileges Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
Kernel logging daemon (klogd) in Linux does not properly cleanse user-injected format strings, which allows local users to gain root privileges by triggering malformed kernel messages.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

The klogd (kernel logging daemon) in Linux contains a format string vulnerability where user-supplied input from kernel messages is not properly sanitized before being passed to format string functions. A local attacker can inject format specifiers (such as %n, %s, or %x) into kernel messages that trigger klogd, leading to arbitrary memory writes and privilege escalation to root.

MitigationUpgrade klogd to a patched version, or update the Linux distribution to receive security fixes. If the system is too old to patch, consider migrating to a supported distribution.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
Debian LinuxOperating system
Affected:= 2.1= 2.2
LinuxOperating system
Affected:= 5.2= 6.2
Mandrake LinuxOperating system
Affected:= 6.0= 6.1= 7.0= 7.1
Slackware LinuxOperating system
Affected:all versions
Secure LinuxOperating system
Affected:= 1.1

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Local
Complexity
Low
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Complete
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete

AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Verify klogd is installed
    Check if the klogd binary exists on the system using 'which klogd' or 'ls -l /sbin/klogd'
    Affected if klogd is not installed, the system is not affected by this specific vulnerability
  2. Determine if klogd is running
    Run 'ps aux | grep klogd' or check the process list for the klogd daemon
    Affected if klogd is not running, the vulnerability cannot be triggered through normal operation
  3. Obtain the installed klogd version
    Run 'klogd -v' or 'klogd --version' to retrieve the version number
    Affected if The version matches one of the affected ranges: Debian 2.1, 2.2; Red Hat 5.2, 6.2; Mandrake 6.0-7.1; Slackware any version; Trustix 1.1
  4. Check if kernel message logging is enabled
    Verify that klogd is configured to process kernel messages, typically by checking /etc/syslog.conf or observing klogd activity with 'ps -f -C klogd'
    Affected if klogd is not actively processing kernel messages, exploitation is not possible through this attack vector

The system is affected if klogd is running and its version matches any of the affected distribution versions listed in the CVE, as the format string vulnerability exists in those specific klogd implementations.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Upgrade klogd to a patched version, or update the Linux distribution to receive security fixes. If the system is too old to patch, consider migrating to a supported distribution.

Fix this in Debian Linux Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Implementation1.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
5.0 hours of engineering $860
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2000-0867 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data