Description
The mktemp utility in uutils coreutils fails to properly handle an empty TMPDIR environment variable. Unlike GNU mktemp, which falls back to /tmp when TMPDIR is an empty string, the uutils implementation treats the empty string as a valid path. This causes temporary files to be created in the current working directory (CWD) instead of the intended secure temporary directory. If the CWD is more permissive or accessible to other users than /tmp, it may lead to unintended information disclosure or unauthorized access to temporary data.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected | Fixed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Uutils | coreutils | < 0.6.0 | 0.6.0 |
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 | rust-coreutils | 0.6.0-1 | — |
| Debian 13 | rust-coreutils | No fix yet | — |
| Debian 12 | rust-coreutils | No fix yet | — |
Ubuntu
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu 25.10 | rust-coreutils | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 24.04 LTS | rust-coreutils | No fix yet | — |
Affected packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Affected | Fixed | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| crates.io | uu_mktemp | < 0.6.0 | 0.6.0 | GHSA-2w8r-9xj7-69j5 |
References
- https://github.com/uutils/coreutils/pull/10566 patch issue-tracking
- https://github.com/uutils/coreutils/releases/tag/0.6.0 vendor-advisory