Description
zsh before 5.0.7 allows evaluation of the initial values of integer variables imported from the environment (instead of treating them as literal numbers). That could allow local privilege escalation, under some specific and atypical conditions where zsh is being invoked in privilege-elevation contexts when the environment has not been properly sanitized, such as when zsh is invoked by sudo on systems where "env_reset" has been disabled.
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 14 | zsh | 5.0.7-3 | — |
| Debian 13 | zsh | 5.0.7-3 | — |
| Debian 12 | zsh | 5.0.7-3 | — |
| Debian 7 | zsh | 4.3.17-1+deb7u1 | DLA-1304-1 |
Ubuntu
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu 16.04 LTS | zsh | 5.1.1-1ubuntu2.1 | USN-3593-1 |
| Ubuntu 14.04 LTS | zsh | 5.0.2-3ubuntu6.1 | USN-3593-1 |
SUSE
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| SLES 12 SP3 | zsh | 5.0.5-6.7.2 | SUSE-SU-2018:1072-1 |
| SLES 11 SP4 | zsh | 4.3.6-67.9.8.1 | SUSE-SU-2022:14910-1 |
Show 2 more (older releases, extended support, other products)Fewer releases
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| SLES for SAP 12 SP3 | zsh | 5.0.5-6.7.2 | SUSE-SU-2018:1072-1 |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Point of Sale 11 SP3 | zsh | 4.3.6-67.9.8.1 | SUSE-SU-2022:14910-1 |
Advisories 4
- USN-3593-1 zsh vulnerabilities Ubuntu Security Notices (USN) · Apr 22, 2026
- DLA-1304-1 zsh - security update Debian Security (DSA / DLA) · Mar 9, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2018:1072-1 Security update for zsh SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Feb 4, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2022:14910-1 Security update for zsh SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Feb 4, 2026