Info Leak in GNU Screen 5.0.0 via setuid-root
CVE-2025-46804 Published on May 26, 2025
Screen 5.0.0 and older versions allow file existence tests when installed setuid-root
A minor information leak when running Screen with setuid-root privileges allows unprivileged users to deduce information about a path that would otherwise not be available.
Affected are older Screen versions, as well as version 5.0.0.
Vulnerability Analysis
CVE-2025-46804 is exploitable with local system access, and requires small amount of user privileges. This vulnerability is considered to have a low attack complexity. The potential impact of an exploit of this vulnerability is considered to have a small impact on confidentiality, a small impact on integrity and availability.
Weakness Type
What is a Side Channel Attack Vulnerability?
The product behaves differently or sends different responses under different circumstances in a way that is observable to an unauthorized actor, which exposes security-relevant information about the state of the product, such as whether a particular operation was successful or not. Discrepancies can take many forms, and variations may be detectable in timing, control flow, communications such as replies or requests, or general behavior. These discrepancies can reveal information about the product's operation or internal state to an unauthorized actor. In some cases, discrepancies can be used by attackers to form a side channel.
CVE-2025-46804 has been classified to as a Side Channel Attack vulnerability or weakness.
Products Associated with CVE-2025-46804
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Exploit Probability
EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) scores estimate the probability that a vulnerability will be exploited in the wild within the next 30 days. The percentile shows you how this score compares to all other vulnerabilities.