CVE-2017-18240
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 Gentoo app-admin/collectd package before 5.7.2-r1 sets the ownership of PID file directory to the collectd account, which might allow local users to kill arbitrary processes by leveraging access to this account for PID file modification before a root script sends a SIGKILL (when the service is stopped).
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 Gentoo app-admin/collectd package before version 5.7.2-r1 incorrectly sets ownership of the PID file directory to the collectd user account. This allows users with access to the collectd account to modify PID files, enabling them to send SIGKILL signals to arbitrary processes when the service is stopped.
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<= 5.7.2= 5.7.2CVSS 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
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
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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Check if collectd is installedRun `equery list app-admin/collectd` or `emerge --info | grep collectd` on GentooAffected if collectd package is installed on the system
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Determine collectd versionRun `equery list -i app-admin/collectd` or check `/var/db/pkg/app-admin/collectd-*/PF`Affected if Installed version is 5.7.2 or any version lower than 5.7.2-r1
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Locate the PID file directoryCheck the PID file path in /etc/collectd.conf (typically Look for 'PIDFile' directive) or common locations like /var/run/collectdAffected if PID file directory exists and is configured for collectd
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Check ownership of PID file directoryRun `ls -ld /var/run/collectd` or the directory shown in PIDFile configurationAffected if The directory is owned by the collectd user or collectd group rather than root
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Verify collectd user statusCheck if collectd user exists with `id collectd` and see if it has a valid shell with `getent passwd collectd`Affected if The collectd user account exists and has login capabilities
A system is affected if collectd version 5.7.2-r1 or earlier is installed AND the PID file directory is owned by the collectd user rather than root, allowing shell access to that account to manipulate PID files.
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 dataUpgrade to collectd version 5.7.2-r1 or later which fixes the ownership issue. Alternatively, manually verify and correct permissions on the PID file directory to prevent unauthorized process termination.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing1.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,744.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2017-18240 — 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-2017-18240 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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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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