# CVE-2015-5186: Command injection in n/a

> Attackers can execute arbitrary commands by exploiting unsanitized escape characters in filenames within the Linux audit utility.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.3 (`CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:N`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 6 Sep 2017
- **Updated:** 6 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** DEBIAN-CVE-2015-5186, GHSA-xcgq-gmv8-4m3c, MGASA-2015-0333, SUSE-SU-2019:0563-1, SUSE-SU-2019:1166-1, UBUNTU-CVE-2015-5186, openSUSE-SU-2024:10252-1

## What is CVE-2015-5186?

CVE-2015-5186 is a medium-severity command injection vulnerability in n/a, published on 6 Sep 2017. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Audit before 2.4.4 in Linux does not sanitize escape characters in filenames.

Weakness: CWE-20 (Improper Input Validation)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2015-5186?

It affects 1 product.


| Package | Ecosystem | Affected | Fixed in |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `audit` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Desktop 12 SP3 | All versions | 2.8.1-8.3.1 |
| `audit-secondary` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Desktop 12 SP3 | All versions | 2.8.1-8.3.3 |
| `audit` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Desktop 12 SP4 | All versions | 2.8.1-10.3.2 |
| `audit-secondary` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Desktop 12 SP4 | All versions | 2.8.1-10.3.2 |
| `audit` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server 12 SP3 | All versions | 2.8.1-8.3.1 |
| `audit-secondary` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server 12 SP3 | All versions | 2.8.1-8.3.3 |
| `audit` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server 12 SP4 | All versions | 2.8.1-10.3.2 |
| `audit-secondary` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server 12 SP4 | All versions | 2.8.1-10.3.2 |
| `audit` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications 12 SP3 | All versions | 2.8.1-8.3.1 |
| `audit-secondary` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications 12 SP3 | All versions | 2.8.1-8.3.3 |
| `audit` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications 12 SP4 | All versions | 2.8.1-10.3.2 |
| `audit-secondary` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications 12 SP4 | All versions | 2.8.1-10.3.2 |
| `audit` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Software Development Kit 12 SP3 | All versions | 2.8.1-8.3.1 |
| `audit` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Software Development Kit 12 SP4 | All versions | 2.8.1-10.3.2 |
| `audit` | openSUSE:Tumbleweed | All versions | 2.5-1.82 |

Products: Linux Audit Project Linux Audit.

## How do I fix CVE-2015-5186?

Upgrade to a fixed version.

## Is CVE-2015-5186 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2015-5186 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2015-5186 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2015-5186 is a medium-severity command injection vulnerability in n/a, published on 6 Sep 2017. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2015-5186 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: n/a. 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-2015-5186/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-5186/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2015-5186
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2015-5186
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2015-5186

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-5186/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.