Track vulnerabilities like this one. Sign up free to get alerted when software you use is affected.
1.9

RHEL 5 kernel lets local users change SCSI settings

CVE-2009-3556 · published 16 years ago
Summary

On Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5, a configuration step for the qla2xxx storage driver creates two files (vport_create and vport_delete) that anyone on the system can write to. This lets any local user modify SCSI host settings, which could disrupt storage operations. Apply the Red Hat security update or manually restrict the file permissions to prevent unrestricted write access.

What to do

The CVE record does not list a fixed version. Check the vendor's site or the advisory links below - a fix may already be released.

Affected software
VendorProductAffected versions
linux linux_kernel 2.6.18
cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:2.6.18:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
redhat enterprise_linux 5
cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux:5:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
Original advisory text
A certain Red Hat configuration step for the qla2xxx driver in the Linux kernel 2.6.18 on Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 5, when N_Port ID Virtualization (NPIV) hardware is used, sets world-writab...
A certain Red Hat configuration step for the qla2xxx driver in the Linux kernel 2.6.18 on Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 5, when N_Port ID Virtualization (NPIV) hardware is used, sets world-writable permissions for the (1) vport_create and (2) vport_delete files under /sys/class/scsi_host/, which allows local users to make arbitrary changes to SCSI host attributes by modifying these files.
References
Fix within
Internet-facing 60 days
Internal At next upgrade
  • Not known to be exploited
  • Needs hands-on effort to exploit (estimated)
  • Gives an attacker partial control (estimated)
Severity
1.9 Low
Exploitation
<1% chance of attack within 30 days
Type
CWE-264Permissions, Privileges, and Access Controls
Timeline
Published27 Jan 2010
Updated4 Nov 2026
First seen29 Sep 2026
Sources
CVE-2009-3556 · NVD
Track software like this
Free during beta