# CVE-2015-1838: Salt improper handling of tmp files

> An attacker can exploit improper file handling in /tmp to execute arbitrary code or escalate privileges via the SaltStack serverdensity_device module.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.3 (`CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L`)
- **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:** Yes
- **Published:** 13 Apr 2017
- **Updated:** 6 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-92pw-mff9-jqgm, PYSEC-2017-29

## What is CVE-2015-1838?

CVE-2015-1838 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in Fedoraproject Fedora, published on 13 Apr 2017. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

modules/serverdensity_device.py in SaltStack before 2014.7.4 does not properly handle files in /tmp.

Weakness: CWE-19

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2015-1838?

3 open source packages ship an affected version, including salt. It affects 2 products.


| Package | Ecosystem | Affected | Fixed in |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `salt` | PyPI | All versions | 2014.7.4 |
| `salt` | PyPI | All versions | 2014.7.4 |
| `salt` | PyPI | All versions | 2014.7.4 |

Products: Fedoraproject Fedora, Saltstack Salt.

## How do I fix CVE-2015-1838?

Upgrade salt to 2014.7.4 or later.

## Is CVE-2015-1838 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2015-1838 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Fedoraproject Fedora

- [CVE-2024-4577](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-4577/): PHP-CGI OS Command Injection (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2021-39226](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-39226/): Grafana Authentication Bypass (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2019-5544](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-5544/): VMware ESXi and Horizon DaaS OpenSLP Heap-Based Buffer Overflow (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2024-4947](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-4947/): Google Chromium V8 Type Confusion (critical 9.6, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2024-4671](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-4671/): Google Chromium Visuals Use-After-Free (critical 9.6, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2015-1838 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2015-1838 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in Fedoraproject Fedora, published on 13 Apr 2017. 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-2015-1838 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected packages and fixed versions:
- salt (PyPI): affected all versions; fixed in 2014.7.4
- salt (PyPI): affected all versions; fixed in 2014.7.4
- salt (PyPI): affected all versions; fixed in 2014.7.4

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-2015-1838/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-1838/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2015-1838
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2015-1838
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2015-1838

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-1838/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.