CVE-2016-7097
kernel: Setting a POSIX ACL via setxattr doesn't clear the setgid bit
Severity
ModerateRed Hat Product Security
CVSS 3.0
Review impact separately from score.
Published · May 26, 2016
Updated · June 28, 2026
Description
It was found that when file permissions were modified via chmod and the user modifying them was not in the owning group or capable of CAP_FSETID, the setgid bit would be cleared. Setting a POSIX ACL via setxattr sets the file permissions as well as the new ACL, but doesn't clear the setgid bit in a similar way. This could allow a local user to gain group privileges via certain setgid applications.
Statement
This issue affects the Linux kernel packages as shipped with Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5. This has been rated as having Moderate security impact and is not currently planned to be addressed in future updates. For additional information, refer to the Red Hat Enterprise Linux Life Cycle: https://access.redhat.com/support/policy/updates/errata/.
This issue affects the Linux kernel packages as shipped with Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6, 7 and MRG-2. Future Linux kernel updates for the respective releases might address this issue.
CVSS score applicability
The CVSS score(s) listed for this vulnerability do not reflect the associated product's status, and are included for informational purposes to better understand the severity of this vulnerability.
Mitigation
No mitigation is specified in collected source.
CVSS / CWE
CVSS 3.0 · 4.4CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:N
CVSS 2.0 · 3.3AV:L/AC:M/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:N
CWE-287 · Improper Authentication