CVE-2019-3698: nagios cron job allows privilege escalation from user nagios to root

Recommended actionWithin 7 days

Medium technical severity with public exploit material referenced by a structured source; prioritise exposed affected systems while verifying vendor guidance.

Patch available

What, why and how

UNIX Symbolic Link (Symlink) Following vulnerability in the cronjob shipped with nagios of SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12, SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11; openSUSE Factory allows local attackers to cause cause DoS or potentially escalate privileges by winning a race. This issue affects: SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12 nagios version 3.5.1-5.27 and prior versions. SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11 nagios version 3.0.6-1.25.36.3.1 and prior versions. openSUSE Factory nagios version 4.4.5-2.1 and prior versions.

What

Why

The product attempts to access a file based on the filename, but it does not properly prevent that filename from identifying a link or shortcut that resolves to an unintended resource.

How

An attacker operating through local access may attempt exploitation without authentication or user interaction. If successful, the issue may cause the confidentiality, integrity or availability impact described by the vendor.

What

Why

The product attempts to access a file based on the filename, but it does not properly prevent that filename from identifying a link or shortcut that resolves to an unintended resource.

How

Exploit reality and attack path

CVSS severity, EPSS forecast probability, public exploit material and CISA-confirmed exploitation are separate signals.

Observed exploitation

Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.

No confirmed evidence

No CISA KEV match was present at the last successful refresh. This means no confirmation from that source, not proof of no exploitation.

Public PoC / exploit material

Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.

Reference recorded

A structured CVE source labels at least one public reference as exploit material. BlackTree has not independently validated that it is safe, reliable or weaponised.

Likely attack path: local access → Improper Link Resolution Before File Access ('Link Following') → cause the confidentiality, integrity or availability impact described by the vendor
Attack surface: Local
Privileges required: None: unauthenticated exploitation is possible
User interaction: None
Attack complexity: High: exploitation depends on specific conditions
Security boundary: Unchanged: impact remains within the vulnerable component's security authority
Weakness ? CWE means Common Weakness Enumeration: a standard category for the underlying weakness.: CWE-59 ↗
CWE-59: Improper Link Resolution Before File Access ('Link Following'). The product attempts to access a file based on the filename, but it does not properly prevent that filename from identifying a link or shortcut that resolves to an unintended resource.
CVSS vector ? CVSS means Common Vulnerability Scoring System. The vector records the metric values used to calculate technical severity.: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:L
Common Vulnerability Scoring System 3.1: the compact vector below is decoded into plain language.
AVLocalAttack vector: The attacker needs local access to the vulnerable system.ACHighAttack complexity: Successful exploitation depends on specific conditions outside the attacker's direct control.PRNonePrivileges required: The attacker does not need an account or existing privileges.UINoneUser interaction: No action by another user is required.SUnchangedScope: The security impact remains within the vulnerable component's authority.CHighConfidentiality impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.INoneIntegrity impact: No direct loss is represented by this metric.ALowAvailability impact: A successful attack can cause a limited loss.
Post-exploitation / living off the land: The issue can support a local privilege or sandbox boundary transition; normal system utilities may then be available in the gained context.

UnauthenticatedCWE-59Public exploit reference

Official authority intelligence

Only matched European and national findings are included. Language selectors and unavailable sources are omitted.

ENISA EUVD · EUVD-2019-13333Official EUVD mapping

0 linked advisory records.

Official EUVD record ↗

JVN iPedia · Japanese · JVNDB-2019-014796SUSE Linux Enterprise Server および openSUSE Factory におけるリンク解釈に関する脆弱性

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server および openSUSE Factory には、リンク解釈に関する脆弱性が存在します。

Official advisory ↗

Patch and workaround

Operational remediation based on structured source evidence.

Status ? Patch availability is based on structured fixed-version fields and authoritative update references. If no fix is verified, check the vendor advisory before making a change.: Patch available
Affected: SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12: nagios ≤ 3.5.1-5.27
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11: nagios ≤ 3.0.6-1.25.36.3.1
Factory: nagios ≤ 4.4.5-2.1
Fixed: An authoritative update reference is available, but the fixed version is not recorded in the structured CVE fields. Check the linked vendor advisory for the applicable release.
Action: Review the linked authoritative reference and apply the recorded fixed release appropriate to the affected product branch.
Workaround: No verified workaround is recorded. Limit untrusted access and use least privilege until authoritative guidance is available.

Evidence and provenance

Published 28 Feb 2020 · Last source change 16 Sept 2024, 16:33 UTC · CWE-59 · Improper Link Resolution Before File Access ('Link Following')

CVE recordCVE.org · 5.1

CVSS sourceCNA

EPSS source

The date BlackTree first stored a score for this CVE from the daily FIRST EPSS feed.

FIRST · tracked since 2026-08-14

European sourceENISA EUVD · EUVD-2019-13333

Product sourceCNA

Remediation sourceCVE/CNA references

CWE sourceCNA

NVD statusNVD modified after enrichment

Core structured fields are present and their contributing authorities are shown above.

Material change intelligence

What changed after publication

View recent updates ↗

No material field changes have been recorded since change tracking began. Routine source refreshes and cosmetic edits are intentionally excluded.

2020-02-28CVE published

2024-09-16Fixed release or patch reference recorded

ENISA EUVD · EUVD-2019-13333↗Public exploit reference↗CVE authority or vendor reference↗Official CVE record (CNA and ADP data)↗NVD record↗

Technical terms and abbreviations used in this report

CVE: Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures: the public identifier for one disclosed vulnerability.
CVSS: Common Vulnerability Scoring System: a technical severity framework; it is not patching priority by itself.
EPSS: Exploit Prediction Scoring System: FIRST's estimate of the probability that exploitation activity will be observed in the next 30 days; it is a forecast, not confirmation.
CWE: Common Weakness Enumeration: the standard category describing the underlying software or hardware weakness.
CNA: CVE Numbering Authority: an organisation authorised to assign and publish CVE records.
CISA ADP: Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Authorized Data Publisher: structured enrichment added to a CVE record.
NVD: National Vulnerability Database: NIST's enrichment service for CVE records.
CERT / CSIRT: A computer security incident response team that publishes warnings or coordinates incident response.
PoC: Proof of concept: public material that demonstrates or helps reproduce exploitation.
CSAF: Common Security Advisory Framework: a machine-readable format for security advisories.
LoTL: Living off the land: abuse of legitimate tools or system functions during an attack.

nagios cron job allows privilege escalation from user nagios to root

Published severity in operational context

Evidence used

Compensating controls

Verification

National CERT insights
?
CERT means Computer Emergency Response Team; CSIRT is the closely related term Computer Security Incident Response Team.

ENISA European Vulnerability Database

EUVD-2019-13333