VulnTideExploited vulnerabilities, by vendor. Data as of .
Not in CISA KEVPublished CVSS 7.8 highEPSS 0.1% probability of exploitation in 30 daysFound by AI: AISLE
Red Hat

CVE-2026-72693: Kbd: local privilege escalation in openvt via incorrect process owner verification allowing passwordless root login

Is it exploited?

Not on CISA's list. CISA has not added it to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog as of . If CISA adds it, this page shows it as known exploited.

How likely is exploitation in the next 30 days?
0.1%

EPSS score, percentile 1.3 of all scored records. A probability estimated by FIRST, not a report of exploitation.

How severe?
7.8 High

CVSS v3.1 base score, given by the CNA

What should I do?

CISA has set no required action, because the vulnerability is not in KEV.

Advisories and patches (6)

Which versions are affected?

Unaffected 0:2.6.4-8.el10_2; 0:2.0.4-11.el8_10.1; 0:2.4.0-12.el9_8; 4.22.9.8.202608251819-0; 4.22.9.8.202609081748-0; 2.10.0-2.hum1

Versions by product

Source: CISA KEV 2026.10.29, as of ; FIRST EPSS, as of ; CVE List, as of . About the data.

What to do

Workaround (from the CVE record)

To mitigate this issue, avoid using `openvt -u` in privileged `kbrequest`/init deployments. Instead, configure the keyboard request to initiate a standard authenticated login on the new virtual terminal, or disable the keyboard request binding entirely until a fix is available. Changes to `kbrequest` configurations may require a system restart or service reload to take effect.

Advisories and patches

This summary is based on the CVE record as of . Check the vendor's advisory before you act: affected versions and fixes can change.

Affected products and versions

As listed in the CVE record.

Red Hat Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10
StatusVersions
Unaffected0:2.6.4-8.el10_2

Versions not listed are: affected.

Red Hat Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
StatusVersions
Unaffected0:2.0.4-11.el8_10.1

Versions not listed are: affected.

Red Hat Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9
StatusVersions
Unaffected0:2.4.0-12.el9_8

Versions not listed are: affected.

Red Hat Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4.22
StatusVersions
Unaffected4.22.9.8.202608251819-0

Versions not listed are: affected.

Red Hat Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4.22
StatusVersions
Unaffected4.22.9.8.202609081748-0

Versions not listed are: affected.

Red Hat Red Hat Hardened Images
StatusVersions
Unaffected2.10.0-2.hum1

Versions not listed are: affected.

Red Hat Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
StatusVersions

Versions not listed are: unknown.

Red Hat Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
StatusVersions

Versions not listed are: affected.

Red Hat Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4
StatusVersions

Versions not listed are: affected.

Versions the record lists as unaffected: 0:2.6.4-8.el10_2, 0:2.0.4-11.el8_10.1, 0:2.4.0-12.el9_8, 4.22.9.8.202608251819-0, 4.22.9.8.202609081748-0, 2.10.0-2.hum1.

Source: CVE List, as of . About the data.

About this vulnerability

`openvt -u` is intended to identify the owner of the current VT and then execute `login` as that user from a privileged context. In the documented `kbrequest`/init usage, the ownership test in `authenticate_user()` relies on `stat("/proc/<pid>/fd/0")`. `stat()` on `/proc/<pid>/fd/0` follows the symlink to the underlying TTY device node. As a result, `buf.st_uid` reflects the owner of the TTY node…

Summary: CVE record, as of .

  • CISA has not added CVE-2026-72693 to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, as of 29 Oct 2026.
  • The CVE record was published on 11 Aug 2026.
  • The CVE record carries a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.8 (High), given by its CNA.
  • FIRST's EPSS model puts the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days at 0.1% (percentile 1.3), as of 29 Oct 2026. EPSS is a statistical estimate, not a report of exploitation.
  • CISA's SSVC assessment in the CVE record: exploitation none, automatable no, technical impact total.
  • The credits in the CVE record name AISLE as finder.

Source: CISA KEV 2026.10.29, as of ; CVE List, as of ; FIRST EPSS, as of . About the data.

Description

Kbd: local privilege escalation in openvt via incorrect process owner verification allowing passwordless root login

`openvt -u` is intended to identify the owner of the current VT and then execute `login` as that user from a privileged context. In the documented `kbrequest`/init usage, the ownership test in `authenticate_user()` relies on `stat("/proc/<pid>/fd/0")`. `stat()` on `/proc/<pid>/fd/0` follows the symlink to the underlying TTY device node. As a result, `buf.st_uid` reflects the owner of the TTY node rather than the owner of the process holding the file descriptor. If the TTY owner returns to `root` or the getty owner after logout while an unprivileged process still has `fd 0` attached to that TTY, the check can incorrectly treat that process as belonging to the privileged console owner. Once that check succeeds, the `-u` path executes a passwordless login as the selected user. In the documented `kbrequest`/init deployment using `openvt -us`, this can result in passwordless `login -f root` on the spawned VT. This report establishes that privilege escalation path for that documented deployment; it does not claim equivalent reachability for deployments that do not use `openvt -u` from a privileged `kbrequest`/init path.

Source: CVE List, as of . About the data.

Weakness

CWE-284

CWE and CAPEC are maintained by MITRE; the entries are those named in the CVE record.

Timeline

DateEvent
CVE record published
CVE record last updated

References

2

Known exploited Red Hat vulnerabilities

  • CVE-2015-3246: Red Hat Libuser Race Condition Vulnerability (added )
  • CVE-2015-5287: Red Hat Automatic Bug Reporting Tool Privilege Escalation Vulnerability (added )
  • CVE-2018-14667: Red Hat JBoss RichFaces Framework Expression Language Injection Vulnerability (added )
  • CVE-2021-3560: Red Hat Polkit Incorrect Authorization Vulnerability (added )
  • CVE-2021-4034: Red Hat Polkit Out-of-Bounds Read and Write Vulnerability (added )