# CVE-2002-0820: Privilege escalation in n/a

> Local attackers can exploit file descriptor handling in FreeBSD kernel to gain privileges via setuid programs.

- **Severity:** High 7.2 (`AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 2 Aug 2002
- **Updated:** 8 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-xpcm-qv2j-fxfr

## What is CVE-2002-0820?

CVE-2002-0820 is a high-severity vulnerability in Freebsd Freebsd, published on 2 Aug 2002. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

FreeBSD kernel 4.6 and earlier closes the file descriptors 0, 1, and 2 after they have already been assigned to /dev/null when the descriptors reference procfs or linprocfs, which could allow local users to reuse the file descriptors in a setuid or setgid program to modify critical data and gain privileges.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2002-0820?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Freebsd Freebsd.

## How do I fix CVE-2002-0820?

No fix has been published for CVE-2002-0820 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2002-0820 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2002-0820 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Freebsd Freebsd

- [CVE-2018-17160](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-17160/): Memory corruption in FreeBSD (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2014-3954](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2014-3954/): Memory corruption in n/a (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2006-4304](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2006-4304/): Memory corruption in n/a (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2006-0226](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2006-0226/): Integer overflow in n/a (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2004-0002](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2004-0002/): Denial of service in n/a (critical 10.0)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2002-0820 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2002-0820 is a high-severity vulnerability in Freebsd Freebsd, published on 2 Aug 2002. 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-2002-0820 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Freebsd Freebsd. 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-2002-0820/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2002-0820/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2002-0820
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2002-0820
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2002-0820

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2002-0820/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.