CVE-2011-0460
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 · uneditedThe init script in kbd, possibly 1.14.1 and earlier, allows local users to overwrite arbitrary files via a symlink attack on /dev/shm/defkeymap.map.
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 confidenceThe kbd package's init script (version 1.14.1 and earlier) has a symlink vulnerability in its handling of /dev/shm/defkeymap.map. When the init script runs, it writes keyboard map data to this path without verifying whether the file is a symlink. A local attacker can create a symlink at /dev/shm/defkeymap.map pointing to an arbitrary target file (e.g., /etc/passwd), causing the init script to overwrite that file when executed.
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<= 1.14.1= 0.99= 1.01= 1.03= 1.04= 1.05= 1.06= 1.08= 1.10= 1.11= 1.12= 1.13= 11.2= 11.3CVSS 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
- M
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- Complete
- Availability
- Complete
AV:L/AC:M/Au:N/C:N/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify installed kbd versionRun 'rpm -q kbd' or 'dpkg -l kbd' or check the init script version header (e.g., 'head -20 /etc/init.d/kbd' or similar init script path)Affected if Installed version is 1.14.1 or earlier, or any of these specific versions: 0.99, 1.01, 1.03, 1.04, 1.05, 1.06, 1.08, 1.10, 1.11, 1.12, 1.13
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Locate the kbd init scriptSearch for keyboard map init scripts: 'find /etc -name "*kbd*" -type f' or 'ls /etc/init.d/*kbd*' or check paths like /etc/rc.d/init.d/kbdAffected if The init script exists and writes to /dev/shm/defkeymap.map without O_NOFOLLOW or symlink checks (check the script content for 'defkeymap.map' file operations)
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Check if /dev/shm/defkeymap.map is a symlinkRun 'ls -la /dev/shm/defkeymap.map' or 'file /dev/shm/defkeymap.map'Affected if The file exists and is a symlink (output shows '->' pointing to another path)
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Verify /dev/shm permissions allow untrusted user accessRun 'ls -ld /dev/shm' and check if it is world-writable (drwxrwxrwt)Affected if Permissions are 1777 (world-writable with sticky bit), allowing any local user to create files/symlinks in /dev/shm
You are affected if kbd version is 1.14.1 or earlier AND the vulnerable init script is present AND /dev/shm has permissive write access that allows symlink creation.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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 dataRestrict permissions on /dev/shm to prevent untrusted user creation of files/symlinks, and update the kbd package to a version newer than 1.14.1 which includes proper symlink checking or uses O_NOFOLLOW when opening the target file.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2011-0460 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2011-0460 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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