CVE-2018-14665
A flaw was found in xorg-x11-server before 1.20.3. An incorrect permission check for -modulepath and -logfile options when starting Xorg.…
- 6.6MediumCVSS base score
- 27.2%Exploitation in 30 daysEPSS · top 1.9% of all CVEs
- NoKnown exploitednot in CISA's KEV catalog
- 11Public exploitsMetasploit, Nuclei and Exploit-DB
Description
A flaw was found in xorg-x11-server before 1.20.3. An incorrect permission check for -modulepath and -logfile options when starting Xorg. X server allows unprivileged users with the ability to log in to the system via physical console to escalate their privileges and run arbitrary code under root privileges.
Public exploit
An exploit or proof of concept is public: anyone can try it against an unpatched system. The public collections list 3 Metasploit modules and 8 Exploit-DB entries for it. 7 references of the record are tagged as an exploit.
Show the exploits18
Metasploit modules3 modules
- Xorg X11 Server Local Privilege Escalation (Metasploit module) (opens in a new tab)
exploit/aix/local/xorg_x11_serverRank greatdisclosed 25 Oct 2018
- Xorg X11 Server SUID logfile Privilege Escalation (Metasploit module) (opens in a new tab)
exploit/multi/local/xorg_x11_suid_serverRank gooddisclosed 25 Oct 2018
- Xorg X11 Server SUID modulepath Privilege Escalation (Metasploit module) (opens in a new tab)
exploit/multi/local/xorg_x11_suid_server_modulepathRank gooddisclosed 25 Oct 2018
Exploit-DB8 entries
- Xorg X11 Server - Local Privilege Escalation (Metasploit) (Exploit-DB entry) (opens in a new tab)
EDB-ID 47701local, unixpublished 20 Nov 2019Verified
- xorg-x11-server < 1.20.3 (Solaris 11) - 'inittab Local Privilege Escalation (Exploit-DB entry) (opens in a new tab)
EDB-ID 46142local, solarispublished 14 Jan 2019Not verified
- Xorg X11 Server (AIX) - Local Privilege Escalation (Exploit-DB entry) (opens in a new tab)
EDB-ID 45938local, aixpublished 4 Dec 2018Not verified
- xorg-x11-server < 1.20.3 - 'modulepath' Local Privilege Escalation (Exploit-DB entry) (opens in a new tab)
EDB-ID 45922local, multiplepublished 30 Nov 2018Not verified
- Xorg X11 Server - SUID privilege escalation (Metasploit) (Exploit-DB entry) (opens in a new tab)
EDB-ID 45908local, multiplepublished 26 Nov 2018Verified
- xorg-x11-server < 1.20.1 - Local Privilege Escalation (Exploit-DB entry) (opens in a new tab)
EDB-ID 45832local, linuxpublished 13 Nov 2018Not verified
- xorg-x11-server 1.20.3 - Privilege Escalation (Exploit-DB entry) (opens in a new tab)
EDB-ID 45742local, openbsdpublished 30 Oct 2018Not verified
- xorg-x11-server < 1.20.3 - Local Privilege Escalation (Exploit-DB entry) (opens in a new tab)
EDB-ID 45697local, multiplepublished 25 Oct 2018Not verified
References tagged exploit7 references
- 45742 (opens in a new tab)exploitx_refsource_EXPLOIT-DBx_transferred
- 45922 (opens in a new tab)exploitx_refsource_EXPLOIT-DBx_transferred
- 45697 (opens in a new tab)exploitx_refsource_EXPLOIT-DBx_transferred
- 45908 (opens in a new tab)exploitx_refsource_EXPLOIT-DBx_transferred
- 46142 (opens in a new tab)exploitx_refsource_EXPLOIT-DBx_transferred
- 45832 (opens in a new tab)exploitx_refsource_EXPLOIT-DBx_transferred
- 45938 (opens in a new tab)exploitx_refsource_EXPLOIT-DBx_transferred
Modules, templates and exploits as listed by the Metasploit Framework (BSD-3-Clause), ProjectDiscovery's Nuclei templates (MIT) and the Exploit Database (GPLv2), read once a day. Where the data comes from
Timeline
ID reserved
By redhat
- 3 months later
· 3 months later
Published
- 6 years later
· 6 years later
Record updated
Changes after publication (a new score, a public exploit, EPSS crossing 1, 10 or 50 %, leaving KEV) are kept since November 2026; earlier ones are not known.
Scores
| Scored by | CVSS | Score | Vector |
|---|---|---|---|
| NVDNVD · Modified | 3.0 | Medium6.6 | CVSS:3.0/AV:P/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H |
- EPSS (exploitation in 30 days)
- 27.2% · top 1.9% of all CVEs (11 Nov 2026)
The list uses the assigner's score when there is one, then CISA's, then NVD's: Medium 6.6.
Affected products
n/a
- affected n/a
References
References20
- 45742 (opens in a new tab)exploitx_refsource_EXPLOIT-DBx_transferred
- [xorg-announce] 20181025 X.Org security advisory: October 25, 2018 (opens in a new tab)mailing-listx_refsource_MLISTx_transferred
- 45922 (opens in a new tab)exploitx_refsource_EXPLOIT-DBx_transferred
- USN-3802-1 (opens in a new tab)vendor-advisoryx_refsource_UBUNTUx_transferred
- https://gitlab.freedesktop.org/xorg/xserver/commit/50c0cf885a6e91c0ea71fb49fa8f1b7c86fe330e (opens in a new tab)x_refsource_CONFIRMx_transferred
- 45697 (opens in a new tab)exploitx_refsource_EXPLOIT-DBx_transferred
- RHSA-2018:3410 (opens in a new tab)vendor-advisoryx_refsource_REDHATx_transferred
- 105741 (opens in a new tab)vdb-entryx_refsource_BIDx_transferred
- 45908 (opens in a new tab)exploitx_refsource_EXPLOIT-DBx_transferred
- https://www.securepatterns.com/2018/10/cve-2018-14665-xorg-x-server.html (opens in a new tab)x_refsource_MISCx_transferred
- 46142 (opens in a new tab)exploitx_refsource_EXPLOIT-DBx_transferred
- GLSA-201810-09 (opens in a new tab)vendor-advisoryx_refsource_GENTOOx_transferred
- 1041948 (opens in a new tab)vdb-entryx_refsource_SECTRACKx_transferred
- https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=CVE-2018-14665 (opens in a new tab)x_refsource_CONFIRMx_transferred
- 45832 (opens in a new tab)exploitx_refsource_EXPLOIT-DBx_transferred
- https://gitlab.freedesktop.org/xorg/xserver/commit/8a59e3b7dbb30532a7c3769c555e00d7c4301170 (opens in a new tab)x_refsource_CONFIRMx_transferred
- 45938 (opens in a new tab)exploitx_refsource_EXPLOIT-DBx_transferred
- DSA-4328 (opens in a new tab)vendor-advisoryx_refsource_DEBIANx_transferred
- http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/154942/Xorg-X11-Server-SUID-modulepath-Privilege-Escalation.html (opens in a new tab)x_refsource_MISCx_transferred
- http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/155276/Xorg-X11-Server-Local-Privilege-Escalation.html (opens in a new tab)x_refsource_MISCx_transferred
Sources
The same CVE in the primary databases and aggregators, to check against.
- CVE.org record (opens in a new tab)
- CVE List JSON (GitHub) (opens in a new tab)
- NVD (opens in a new tab)
- FIRST EPSS (opens in a new tab)
- EUVD EUVD-2018-6560 (opens in a new tab)
- OSV.dev (opens in a new tab)
- GitHub Advisories (opens in a new tab)
- CIRCL Vulnerability-Lookup (opens in a new tab)
Badge for a README or a ticket
[](https://cveledger.app/cve/CVE-2018-14665)Record last updated .