OpenshiftApplication · Redhat
CVE-2019-19346
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 · uneditedAn insecure modification vulnerability in the /etc/passwd file was found in the container openshift/mariadb-apb, affecting versions before the following 4.3.5, 4.2.21, 4.1.37, and 3.11.188-4 . An attacker with access to the container could use this flaw to modify /etc/passwd and escalate their privileges.
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 openshift/mariadb-apb container allows writable access to /etc/passwd, enabling an attacker with container access to modify user accounts or add new privileged users by editing this file, achieving local privilege escalation.
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
OpenshiftApplication
< 3.11.188-4>= 4.0.0, < 4.1.37>= 4.2.0, < 4.2.21>= 4.3.0, < 4.3.5CVSS 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
- High
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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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Identify mariadb-apb container versionRetrieve the running mariadb-apb container image version using 'oc get pod <pod_name> -o jsonpath={.spec.containers[0].image}' or equivalent container runtime command, then inspect the image tag or digestAffected if The version is less than 3.11.188-4, or between 4.0.0 and 4.1.36, between 4.2.0 and 4.2.20, or between 4.3.0 and 4.3.4
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Check security context for /etc/passwd write accessExamine the container security context or pod security context configuration in the deployment yaml or via 'oc get pod <pod_name> -o yaml' and look for securityContext settings, specifically any allowPrivilegeEscalation or fsGroup settings that may permit writes to /etc/passwdAffected if The security context does not explicitly set /etc/passwd as read-only or allows writable supplemental groups
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Verify /etc/passwd mount configurationCheck the pod specification for volume mounts: run 'oc get pod <pod_name> -o jsonpath={.spec.containers[0].volumeMounts}' and inspect whether /etc/passwd is mounted as a volume and inspect the associated volume definition for readOnly settingsAffected if /etc/passwd is mounted without the readOnly: true flag set on the volume mount
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Test write access to /etc/passwd from within containerIf you have access to exec into the container, attempt to verify writability: 'oc exec <pod_name> -- touch /etc/passwd.test' and check if it succeeds, or check file permissions directly with 'oc exec <pod_name> -- ls -la /etc/passwd'Affected if The file shows write permissions for the container's running user or the touch test succeeds
A user is affected if the mariadb-apb container version falls within the vulnerable ranges AND /etc/passwd is mounted or configured with write access in the security context.
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 data3.11.188-44.1.374.2.21
Update the mariadb-apb container image to versions 4.3.5, 4.2.21, 4.1.37, or 3.11.188-4 or later, and configure the container security context to mount /etc/passwd as read-only.
Fix this in Openshift
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing2.0 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 $1,696.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2019-19346 — 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-2019-19346 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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