CVE-2024-32462

A flaw was found in Flatpak, a system for building, distributing, and running sandboxed desktop applications on Linux. Normally, the "--command" argument of "flatpak run" expects being given a command to run in the specified Flatpak app, along with optional arguments. However, it is possible to pass bwrap arguments to "--command=" instead, such as "--bind". It is possible to pass an arbitrary "commandline" to the portal interface "org.freedesktop.portal.Background.RequestBackground" within the Flatpak app. This is normally safe because it can only specify a command that exists inside the sandbox. When a crafted "commandline" is converted into a "--command" and arguments, the app could achieve the same effect of passing arguments directly to bwrap to achieve sandbox escape.

This vulnerability poses an important security risk due to its potential for sandbox escape within Flatpak environments. Exploiting this vulnerability allows a malicious Flatpak application to execute arbitrary code outside of its designated sandbox, effectively bypassing the security measures intended to restrict its system access. By manipulating the --command argument and the org.freedesktop.portal.Background.RequestBackground portal interface, an attacker can craft commands that are misinterpreted as bwrap options, leading to unauthorized execution of commands with elevated privileges. This could result in unauthorized data access, system compromise, and potentially enable further exploitation of the host system.

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 for this issue is either not available or the currently available options don't meet the Red Hat Product Security criteria comprising ease of use and deployment, applicability to widespread installation base or stability.