CVE-2020-16120

Unprivileged overlay + shiftfs read access

MEDIUM
4.4
CVSS Score
Published: February 10, 2021 at 07:45 PM UTC
Updated: June 17, 2026 at 02:57 AM UTC
3 products affected across 3 vendorsLinux KernelUbuntu LinuxLinux Kernel

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Severity
MEDIUM4.4
Exploit prediction
EPSS 0.4%

Description

Overlayfs did not properly perform permission checking when copying up files in an overlayfs and could be exploited from within a user namespace, if, for example, unprivileged user namespaces were allowed. It was possible to have a file not readable by an unprivileged user to be copied to a mountpoint controlled by the user, like a removable device. This was introduced in kernel version 4.19 by commit d1d04ef ("ovl: stack file ops"). This was fixed in kernel version 5.8 by commits 56230d9 ("ovl: verify permissions in ovl_path_open()"), 48bd024 ("ovl: switch to mounter creds in readdir") and 05acefb ("ovl: check permission to open real file"). Additionally, commits 130fdbc ("ovl: pass correct flags for opening real directory") and 292f902 ("ovl: call secutiry hook in ovl_real_ioctl()") in kernel 5.8 might also be desired or necessary. These additional commits introduced a regression in overlay mounts within user namespaces which prevented access to files with ownership outside of the user namespace. This regression was mitigated by subsequent commit b6650da ("ovl: do not fail because of O_NOATIMEi") in kernel 5.11.

Affected

Our own answer: ranges merged, affected separated from platform-only, with confidence and review flags.

v < 5.11
Affected range stops below 5.11, so it looks safe — our inference, not a vendor statement
5.11-stable ≤ v < 5.11.05.11-stable
Affected range stops below 5.11.0, so it looks safe — our inference, not a vendor statement

References (11)

Vendor Advisoryx_refsource_UBUNTUIssue TrackingPatchThird Party Advisory
https://launchpad.net/bugs/1894980
Vendor Advisoryx_refsource_UBUNTUIssue TrackingThird Party Advisory
https://launchpad.net/bugs/1900141
Vendor Advisoryx_refsource_UBUNTUThird Party Advisory
https://ubuntu.com/USN-4576-1

CVSS

Attack Vector
LOCAL
Complexity
LOW
Privileges
HIGH
User Interaction
NONE
Scope
UNCHANGED
Confidentiality
HIGH
Integrity
NONE
Availability
NONE
Vector?

Quick Info

StatusMODIFIED
CWE
CWE-266NVD-CWE-Other

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