Linux 3.13.0-32-generic Exploit -
owen:$6$salt$hash:0:0:root:/root:/bin/bash After a successful exploit, the attacker runs su owen (no password needed depending on the crafted hash) and becomes root. Disclaimer: Only run this on systems you own or have explicit written permission to test.
char *lower = "/tmp/lower"; char *upper = "/tmp/upper"; char *work = "/tmp/work"; char *merged = "/tmp/merged"; mkdir(lower, 0777); mkdir(upper, 0777); mkdir(work, 0777); mkdir(merged, 0777); Inside the lower directory, the exploit creates a dummy file that it will later try to replace. linux 3.13.0-32-generic exploit
For penetration testers: Enjoy the easy win, but document it thoroughly. A root shell via a 9-year-old bug is a clear sign of a broken patch management policy. For penetration testers: Enjoy the easy win, but
// Create a file we own int fd = open("lower/file", O_CREAT | O_RDWR, 0777); write(fd, "AAAA", 4); close(fd); This is the magic trick. The exploit mounts an overlay filesystem where lower is read-only (where the target file lives) and upper is writable (where changes go). The exploit mounts an overlay filesystem where lower
The bug resided in the overlayfs implementation regarding the rename operation. Specifically, when renaming a file across directories on an overlayfs mount, the kernel failed to properly check permissions on the upper directory. A local attacker could exploit this race condition to rename a file from a world-writable location to a protected location (like /etc/passwd or /etc/sudoers ). In a normal filesystem, renaming a file requires write permissions on the source and target directories. However, in the buggy overlayfs code, the kernel performed the rename operation using the lower filesystem's credentials (which are privileged) instead of the calling user's credentials.
Posted by: Security Research Team Date: October 26, 2023 (Updated) Difficulty: Advanced Introduction If you have been in the cybersecurity space for a while, you have likely stumbled upon a vulnerability report or an exploit script mentioning a specific kernel string: linux 3.13.0-32-generic .
In this post, we will analyze the most famous exploit targeting this kernel: (aka "Overlayfs"). The Target: Ubuntu 14.04.5 LTS - Kernel 3.13.0-32-generic First, let's identify the target. An attacker who gains low-privileged access (e.g., www-data via a webshell, or a standard user) will run:



