Description
kinit in KDE Frameworks before 5.23.0 uses weak permissions (644) for /tmp/xauth-xxx-_y, which allows local users to obtain X11 cookies of other users and consequently capture keystrokes and possibly gain privileges by reading the file.
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 | kinit | 5.23.0-1 | — |
| Debian 13 | kinit | 5.23.0-1 | — |
| Debian 12 | kinit | 5.23.0-1 | — |
Ubuntu
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu 16.04 LTS | kinit | 5.18.0-0ubuntu1.1 | — |
SUSE
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| SUSE Package Hub 12 SP1 | kinit | 5.20.0-6.1 | SUSE-SU-2016:2217-1 |
Advisories 1
- SUSE-SU-2016:2217-1 Security update for kinit SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · May 2, 2025
References
- https://quickgit.kde.org/?p=kinit.git&a=commitdiff&h=dece8fd89979cd1a86c03bcaceef6e9221e8d8cd
- https://quickgit.kde.org/?p=kinit.git&a=commitdiff&h=72f3702dbe6cf15c06dc13da2c99c864e9022a58
- 91769 vdb-entry
- openSUSE-SU-2016:1723 vendor-advisory
- https://bugs.kde.org/show_bug.cgi?id=358593
- http://www.kde.com/announcements/kde-frameworks-5.23.0.php
- https://www.kde.org/info/security/advisory-20160621-1.txt
- https://bugs.kde.org/show_bug.cgi?id=363140