Description
A flaw was found in PolicyKit (aka polkit) 0.115 that allows a user with a uid greater than INT_MAX to successfully execute any systemctl command.
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 | policykit-1 | 0.105-23 | — |
| Debian 13 | policykit-1 | 0.105-23 | — |
| Debian 12 | policykit-1 | 0.105-23 | — |
| Debian 9 | policykit-1 | 0.105-18+deb9u1 | DSA-4350-1 |
| Debian 8 | policykit-1 | 0.105-15~deb8u4 | DLA-1644-1 |
Ubuntu
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu 18.04 LTS | policykit-1 | 0.105-20ubuntu0.18.04.4 | USN-3861-1 |
| Ubuntu 16.04 LTS | policykit-1 | 0.105-14.1ubuntu0.4 | USN-3861-1 |
| Ubuntu 14.04 LTS | policykit-1 | 0.105-4ubuntu3.14.04.5 | USN-3861-1 |
Red Hat
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| RHEL 7 | polkit +2 | 0.112-22.el7 | RHSA-2019:2046 |
Show 1 more (older releases, extended support, other products)Fewer releases
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| RHEL 7.6 EUS | polkit +2 | 0.112-18.el7_6.2 | RHSA-2019:3232 |
SUSE
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| SLES 15 | polkit | 0.114-3.6.1 | SUSE-SU-2019:0015-1 |
| SLES 12 SP4 | polkit | 0.113-5.15.1 | SUSE-SU-2019:0019-1 |
| SLES 12 SP3 | polkit | 0.113-5.15.1 | SUSE-SU-2019:0019-1 |
| SLES 12 SP2 | polkit | 0.113-5.15.1 | SUSE-SU-2019:0019-1 |
| SLES 12 SP1 | polkit | 0.113-5.15.1 | SUSE-SU-2019:0019-1 |
Show 7 more (older releases, extended support, other products)Fewer releases
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| SLES 12 | polkit | 0.113-5.15.1 | SUSE-SU-2019:0019-1 |
| SLES for SAP 12 SP4 | polkit | 0.113-5.15.1 | SUSE-SU-2019:0019-1 |
| SLES for SAP 12 SP3 | polkit | 0.113-5.15.1 | SUSE-SU-2019:0019-1 |
| SLES for SAP 12 SP2 | polkit | 0.113-5.15.1 | SUSE-SU-2019:0019-1 |
| SLES for SAP 12 SP1 | polkit | 0.113-5.15.1 | SUSE-SU-2019:0019-2 |
| SUSE OpenStack Cloud 7 | polkit | 0.113-5.15.1 | SUSE-SU-2019:0019-1 |
| SUSE Enterprise Storage 4 | polkit | 0.113-5.15.1 | SUSE-SU-2019:0019-1 |
openSUSE
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| openSUSE Tumbleweed | polkit | 0.118-7.2 | openSUSE-SU-2024:11180-1 |
| openSUSE Leap 15.0 | polkit | 0.114-lp150.2.6.1 | openSUSE-SU-2019:0010-1 |
Alpine
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alpine v3.9 | polkit | 0.105-r9 | — |
| Alpine v3.8 | polkit | 0.105-r9 | — |
| Alpine v3.7 | polkit | 0.105-r8 | — |
| Alpine v3.6 | polkit | 0.105-r8 | — |
Amazon Linux
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon Linux 2 | polkit +2 | 0.112-22.amzn2.1 | ALAS2-2019-1331 |
Oracle Linux
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oracle Linux 7 | polkit +2 | 0.112-22.0.1.el7 | ELSA-2019-2046 |
Public exploits
Exploit or proof-of-concept code for this vulnerability is publicly available, which lowers the bar for attackers. Treat it as a reason to patch sooner.
Third-party code, not reviewed by us. Public PoCs are sometimes fake or contain malware. Read the code first and run it only in an isolated lab, against systems you are authorised to test.
GitHub 4 repositories
-
Ekultek/PoC ★ 19 · Dec 17, 2018
Leveraging CVE-2018-19788 without root shells
-
AbsoZed/CVE-2018-19788 ★ 5 · Dec 7, 2018
Silly easy exploit for CVE-2018-19788
-
d4gh0s7/CVE-2018-19788 ★ 3 · Dec 7, 2018
Ansible role to check the vulnerability tracked as CVE-2018-19788, impacts PolicyKit version 0.115 which comes pre-installed on a wide range of Linux distributions
-
jhlongjr/CVE-2018-19788 ★ 1 · Dec 31, 2018
Exploiting The CVE-2018-19788 PolicyKit Bug
Sources: PoC-in-GitHub, Metasploit Framework, Exploit-DB — updated daily. Only links are listed; no exploit code is hosted here.
Advisories 12
- RHSA-2019:3232 Red Hat Security Advisory: polkit security update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Jun 26, 2026
- RHSA-2019:2046 Red Hat Security Advisory: polkit security and bug fix update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Jun 26, 2026
- USN-3861-1 policykit-1 vulnerability Ubuntu Security Notices (USN) · Apr 22, 2026
- DSA-4350-1 policykit-1 - security update Debian Security (DSA / DLA) · Mar 9, 2026
- DLA-1644-1 policykit-1 - security update Debian Security (DSA / DLA) · Mar 9, 2026
- openSUSE-SU-2019:0010-1 Security update for polkit SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Feb 4, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2019:0019-1 Security update for polkit SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Feb 4, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2019:0019-2 Security update for polkit SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Feb 4, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2019:0015-1 Security update for polkit SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Feb 4, 2026
- openSUSE-SU-2024:11180-1 libpolkit0-0.118-7.2 on GA media SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Feb 4, 2026
- ALAS2-2019-1331 Moderate: polkit security update (Amazon Linux 2) Amazon Linux Security Center (ALAS) · Oct 23, 2019
- ELSA-2019-2046 Moderate: polkit security and bug fix update (Oracle Linux 7) Oracle Linux Security Advisories (ELSA) · Aug 13, 2019
References
- USN-3861-1 vendor-advisory
- [debian-lts-announce] 20190128 [SECURITY] [DLA 1644-1] policykit-1 security update mailing-list
- USN-3861-2 vendor-advisory
- https://bugs.debian.org/915332
- https://gitlab.freedesktop.org/polkit/polkit/issues/74
- DSA-4350 vendor-advisory
- RHSA-2019:2046 vendor-advisory
- GLSA-201908-14 vendor-advisory
- RHSA-2019:3232 vendor-advisory