CVE-2020-26273

CVE-2020-26273 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linuxfoundation Osquery with a CVSS 3.x base score of 5.2. It is not currently listed as actively exploited by CISA, and its EPSS exploit-prediction score is low. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-77.

Key facts

Description

osquery is a SQL powered operating system instrumentation, monitoring, and analytics framework. In osquery before version 4.6.0, by using sqlite's ATTACH verb, someone with administrative access to osquery can cause reads and writes to arbitrary sqlite databases on disk. This _does_ allow arbitrary files to be created, but they will be sqlite databases. It does not appear to allow existing non-sqlite files to be overwritten. This has been patched in osquery 4.6.0. There are several mitigating factors and possible workarounds. In some deployments, the people with access to these interfaces may be considered administrators. In some deployments, configuration is managed by a central tool. This tool can filter for the `ATTACH` keyword. osquery can be run as non-root user. Because this also limits the desired access levels, this requires deployment specific testing and configuration.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2020-26273?
osquery is a SQL powered operating system instrumentation, monitoring, and analytics framework. In osquery before version 4.6.0, by using sqlite's ATTACH verb, someone with administrative access to osquery can cause reads and writes to arbitrary sqlite databases on disk. This _does_ allow arbitrary files to be created, but they will be sqlite databases. It does not appear to allow existing non-sqlite files to be overwritten. This has been patched in osquery 4.6.0. There are several mitigating factors and possible workarounds. In some deployments, the people with access to these interfaces may be considered administrators. In some deployments, configuration is managed by a central tool. This tool can filter for the `ATTACH` keyword. osquery can be run as non-root user. Because this also limits the desired access levels, this requires deployment specific testing and configuration.
How severe is CVE-2020-26273?
CVE-2020-26273 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 5.2, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over local access with low attack complexity, requires low privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is low, integrity low, and availability none.
Is CVE-2020-26273 being actively exploited?
It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 1% (57th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2020-26273?
CVE-2020-26273 affects Linuxfoundation Osquery. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.
How do I fix CVE-2020-26273?
Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.
When was CVE-2020-26273 published?
CVE-2020-26273 was published on 2020-12-16 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (1)

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