# CVE-2015-3246: Red Hat Libuser Race Condition

> Local attackers can cause denial of service via inconsistent file state in /etc/passwd, potentially leading to privilege escalation when combined with another vulnerability.

- **Severity:** High 7.4 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Yes, since 26 Aug 2026 (CISA KEV)
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 11 Aug 2015
- **Updated:** 1 Oct 2026
- **Also known as:** DEBIAN-CVE-2015-3246, GHSA-f52h-j689-x786, UBUNTU-CVE-2015-3246

## What is CVE-2015-3246?

CVE-2015-3246 is a high-severity vulnerability in Opensuse Opensuse, published on 11 Aug 2015. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

libuser before 0.56.13-8 and 0.60 before 0.60-7, as used in the userhelper program in the usermode package, directly modifies /etc/passwd, which allows local users to cause a denial of service (inconsistent file state) by causing an error during the modification. NOTE: this issue can be combined with CVE-2015-3245 to gain privileges.

Weakness: CWE-264, CWE-367 (Time-of-check Time-of-use (TOCTOU) Race Condition)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2015-3246?

It affects 3 products.


Products: Libuser Project Libuser, Opensuse Opensuse, Redhat Enterprise Linux.

## How do I fix CVE-2015-3246?

Apply the vendor's patch. US federal agencies must fix it by 9 Sep 2026.

## Is CVE-2015-3246 being exploited?

Yes. Attackers have exploited CVE-2015-3246 in the wild since at least 26 Aug 2026.

Public exploit code:

- Libuser roothelper Privilege Escalation (metasploit)
- Libuser Library - Multiple Vulnerabilities (exploitdb)
- Libuser - 'roothelper' Local Privilege Escalation (Metasploit) (exploitdb)
- Libuser - 'roothelper' Local Privilege Escalation (Metasploit) (exploitdb)
- CVE-2015-3246 (github_poc): https://github.com/HORKimhab/CVE-2015-3246

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2015-3246 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2015-3246 is a high-severity vulnerability in Opensuse Opensuse, published on 11 Aug 2015. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: Yes. Attackers have exploited CVE-2015-3246 in the wild since at least 26 Aug 2026.

Affected product: Opensuse Opensuse. 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-2015-3246/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-3246/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2015-3246
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2015-3246
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2015-3246

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From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-3246/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.