# CVE-2019-2389: Process termination via PID file manipulation

> Users with write access to the PID file can kill arbitrary processes when root stops MongoDB, leading to privilege escalation or denial of service.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.3 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** A user has to click or open something
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 30 Aug 2019
- **Updated:** 4 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-vjcf-4g29-6hfr

## What is CVE-2019-2389?

CVE-2019-2389 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Mongodb Mongodb, published on 30 Aug 2019. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.

### Official description

Incorrect scoping of kill operations in MongoDB Server's packaged SysV init scripts allow users with write access to the PID file to insert arbitrary PIDs to be killed when the root user stops the MongoDB process via SysV init. This issue affects MongoDB Server v4.0 versions prior to 4.0.11; MongoDB Server v3.6 versions prior to 3.6.14; MongoDB Server v3.4 versions prior to 3.4.22.

Weakness: CWE-20 (Improper Input Validation), CWE-732 (Incorrect Permission Assignment for Critical Resource)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2019-2389?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Mongodb Mongodb.

## How do I fix CVE-2019-2389?

No fix has been published for CVE-2019-2389 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2019-2389 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2019-2389 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Mongodb Mongodb

- [CVE-2025-14847](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-14847/): MongoDB and MongoDB Server Improper Handling of Length Parameter Inconsistency (high 8.7, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2026-82067](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-82067/): Auth bypass in MongoDB Server (critical 9.2)
- [CVE-2026-13072](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-13072/): MongoDB Improper Input Validation in Compute Mode External Data Processing Leading to Memory Corruption (critical 9.2)
- [CVE-2017-15535](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-15535/): Denial of service in n/a (critical 9.1)
- [CVE-2026-18691](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-18691/): Improper Authentication in MongoDB Intra-Cluster Connections Allows Credential Exposure (critical 9.0)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2019-2389 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2019-2389 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Mongodb Mongodb, published on 30 Aug 2019. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2019-2389 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Mongodb Mongodb. 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-2019-2389/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-2389/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2019-2389
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2019-2389
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2019-2389

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-2389/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.