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Util LinuxApplication · Andries Brouwer

CVE-2005-2876

HIGH · 7.2 CVSS v2.0 Published 2005-09-13
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
umount in util-linux 2.8 to 2.12q, 2.13-pre1, and 2.13-pre2, and other packages such as loop-aes-utils, allows local users with unmount permissions to gain privileges via the -r (remount) option, which causes the file system to be remounted with just the read-only flag, which effectively clears the nosuid, nodev, and other flags.

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 umount command in util-linux 2.8-2.12q and certain 2.13 pre-releases allows local users with unmount permissions to exploit the -r (remount read-only) option, which remounts the filesystem with only the read-only flag, stripping critical security options like nosuid, nodev, noexec, and nosgid.

MitigationUpgrade to util-linux version 2.13 or later which contains the fix, or implement restricted sudo policies for the umount command to limit which users can execute it.

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
Util LinuxApplication
Affected:= 2.8.1_alpha= 2.8_12= 2.9i= 2.9w= 2.10f= 2.10m= 2.10p= 2.11f= 2.11n= 2.11q= 2.11r= 2.11w

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. Identify installed util-linux version
    Run `umount --version` or `mount --version` to display the version of the umount utility. On RPM-based systems, run `rpm -q util-linux`. On Debian-based systems, run `dpkg -l util-linux`.
    Affected if The reported version falls within 2.8.1_alpha through 2.12q, or is an early 2.13 pre-release (such as 2.13 pre-releases prior to the fix). Compare your version to the known affected range.
  2. Verify if untrusted users have umount access
    Check /etc/group for members of the 'disk' group (traditionally granted umount privileges). Also review any sudo configurations (check /etc/sudoers or files in /etc/sudoers.d/) for umount command permissions granted to non-root users or groups.
    Affected if Non-root users or groups outside of trusted administrators have permissions to run umount, providing them an opportunity to exploit the flaw.
  3. Determine if mount point security options are in effect
    Run `mount` or inspect /proc/mounts to view current mount options for mounted filesystems. Look for security-relevant options such as nosuid, nodev, noexec, and nosgid.
    Affected if Filesystems are mounted without these security options and are accessible to users with umount permissions, indicating potential exposure to the remount attack.
  4. Test umount -r behavior if environment permits
    On a test filesystem (not production), execute `umount -r <mountpoint>` and immediately run `mount` again on that point to observe whether security options were stripped.
    Affected if The remount operation removes nosuid, nodev, noexec, or nosgid options, confirming the vulnerability is present.

A system is affected if it runs a vulnerable util-linux version (2.8.1_alpha through 2.12q or early 2.13 pre-release) and allows untrusted users to execute the umount command with the -r option.

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 to util-linux version 2.13 or later which contains the fix, or implement restricted sudo policies for the umount command to limit which users can execute it.

Fix this in Util Linux Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
7.0 hours of engineering $1,240
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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-2005-2876 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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What belongs here
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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