Description
The xatitv program in the gatos package does not properly drop root privileges when the configuration file does not exist, which allows local users to execute arbitrary commands via shell metacharacters in a system call.
Fixed in Linux distributions
Distributions backport fixes, so the version that fixes this vulnerability differs per release — upgrade to at least the version shown. From the distributions' security trackers and advisories.
Debian
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debian 13 | gatos | 0.0.5-12 | — |
| Debian 12 | gatos | 0.0.5-12 | — |
| Debian 3.0 | gatos | 0.0.5-6woody1 | DSA-509 |
Advisories 1
- DSA-509 gatos - privilege escalation Debian Security (DSA / DLA) · Mar 9, 2026
References
- DSA-509 vendor-advisory
- gatos-xatitv-gain-privileges(16273) vdb-entry
- 10437 vdb-entry