dbcve.org
PmakeApplication · Berkeley

CVE-2001-0915

HIGH · 7.2 CVSS v2.0 Published 2001-11-21
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 2.1.33 or later.
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
Format string vulnerability in Berkeley parallel make (pmake) 2.1.33 and earlier allows a local user to gain root privileges via format specifiers in the check argument of a shell definition.

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

A format string vulnerability exists in Berkeley parallel make (pmake) versions 2.1.33 and earlier. The vulnerability is present in how the 'check' argument of a shell definition is processed, allowing a local attacker to inject format specifiers that can be interpreted by printf-style functions, potentially leading to arbitrary memory writes and root privilege escalation.

MitigationUpgrade to a patched version of pmake that properly sanitizes format strings in shell definitions, or replace pmake with a modern make implementation that does not contain this vulnerability.

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
PmakeApplication
Affected:<= 2.1.33

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. Determine if pmake is installed
    Run 'which pmake' or 'dpkg -l | grep pmake' or 'rpm -qa | grep pmake' to locate the pmake binary
    Affected if pmake is found on the system
  2. Identify the pmake version
    Run 'pmake -v' or 'pmake --version' to display the installed version number
    Affected if The version is 2.1.33 or earlier
  3. Verify the binary name and path
    Check 'ls -la /usr/bin/pmake' or the path returned by 'which pmake' to confirm the pmake binary exists
    Affected if The pmake binary exists at any path
  4. Check for shell definition usage
    Inspect any Makefiles or build scripts for shell definitions that include a 'check' argument (e.g., shell definitions with conditional checks)
    Affected if Makefiles use shell definitions with 'check' arguments that could accept user-controlled input

A system is affected if pmake version 2.1.33 or earlier is installed and Makefiles using shell definitions with 'check' arguments process untrusted input.

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 2.1.33
Interim mitigation

Upgrade to a patched version of pmake that properly sanitizes format strings in shell definitions, or replace pmake with a modern make implementation that does not contain this vulnerability.

Fix this in Pmake Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation3.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
8.0 hours of engineering $1,420
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,272.

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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-2001-0915 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