# CVE-1999-0690: Privilege escalation in n/a

> Local attackers can escalate privileges to root by exploiting the inclusion of the current directory in the root user's PATH variable within HP CDE.

- **Severity:** High 7.2 (`AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 4 Jan 2000
- **Updated:** 1 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-rf75-mr45-vgcx

## What is CVE-1999-0690?

CVE-1999-0690 is a high-severity vulnerability in Hp Hp-Ux, published on 4 Jan 2000. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

HP CDE program includes the current directory in root's PATH variable.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-1999-0690?

It affects 2 products.


Products: Cde Cde, Hp Hp-Ux.

## How do I fix CVE-1999-0690?

No fix has been published for CVE-1999-0690 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-1999-0690 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-1999-0690 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Hp Hp-Ux

- [CVE-1999-0687](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-1999-0687/): Auth bypass in n/a (high 7.5)
- [CVE-1999-0689](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-1999-0689/): Path traversal in n/a (high 7.2)
- [CVE-1999-0691](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-1999-0691/): Memory corruption in n/a (high 7.2)
- [CVE-1999-0713](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-1999-0713/): Privilege escalation in n/a (high 7.2)
- [CVE-1999-0014](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-1999-0014/): Privilege escalation in n/a (high 7.2)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-1999-0690 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-1999-0690 is a high-severity vulnerability in Hp Hp-Ux, published on 4 Jan 2000. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-1999-0690 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Hp Hp-Ux. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-1999-0690/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-1999-0690/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-1999-0690
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-1999-0690
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-1999-0690

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-1999-0690/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.