The (1) gendef.sh, (2) doc/fixinfo.sh, and (3) contrib/gdiffmk/tests/runtests.in scripts in GNU troff (aka groff) 1.21 and earlier allow local users to overwrite arbitrary files via a symlink attack on a gro#####.tmp or /tmp/##### temporary file
Published Jun 30, 2011
3.3
LOWCVSS 2.0
EPSS 0.30%
Description
The (1) gendef.sh, (2) doc/fixinfo.sh, and (3) contrib/gdiffmk/tests/runtests.in scripts in GNU troff (aka groff) 1.21 and earlier allow local users to overwrite arbitrary files via a symlink attack on a gro#####.tmp or /tmp/##### temporary file.
Affected products
No data.
- ≤ 1.21
- 1.10
- 1.11
- 1.11a
- 1.14
- 1.15
- 1.16
- 1.16.1
- 1.17.1
- 1.17.2
- 1.18.1
- 1.19
- 1.19.1
- 1.19.2
- 1.20
- 1.20.1
No data.
No Red Hat product state for this CVE.
No package ranges for this CVE.
Remediation
Red Hat statement
The Red Hat Security Response Team has rated this issue as having low security impact because it can only be exploited during package compilation. We do not currently plan to fix this flaw.
Metrics
No CVSS v4.0 score for this CVE.
No CVSS v3.1 score for this CVE.
No CVSS v3.0 score for this CVE.
AV:L/AC:M/Au:N/C:N/I:P/A:P
This CVE is not in the KEV list.
No CISA SSVC assessment for this CVE yet.
Estimated probability of exploitation in the wild in the next 30 days (FIRST EPSS). As of Oct 2, 2026.
Score over time
2022–2026- EPSS v2
- EPSS v3
- EPSS v4
- EPSS v5
Percentile over time
- EPSS v2
- EPSS v3
- EPSS v4
- EPSS v5
Table of values (9 key points)
Flat stretches are collapsed; showing up to 120 newest points.
| Date | Score | Percentile | Model |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 2, 2026 | 0.30% (0.00301) | 20.76th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Jun 15, 2026 | 0.30% (0.00301) | 21.55th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Mar 17, 2025 | 0.04% (0.00036) | 7.10th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Dec 12, 2024 | 0.04% (0.00042) | 5.07th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 7, 2023 | 0.04% (0.00042) | 5.63th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 6, 2023 | 1.03% (0.01034) | 41.69th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Sep 10, 2022 | 1.03% (0.01034) | 39.91th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Apr 1, 2022 | 1.03% (0.01034) | 37.91th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Feb 4, 2022 | 1.03% (0.01034) | 20.32th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
References (9)
- http://cvsweb.openwall.com/cgi/cvsweb.cgi/Owl/packages/groff/groff-1.20.1-owl-tmp.diff x_refsource_CONFIRMPatch
- http://cvsweb.openwall.com/cgi/cvsweb.cgi/Owl/packages/groff/groff-1.20.1-owl-tmp.diff.diff?r1=1.1%3Br2=1.2%3Bf=h x_refsource_CONFIRM
- http://openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2009/08/14/4 mailing-listx_refsource_MLIST
- http://openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2009/08/14/5 mailing-listx_refsource_MLISTPatch
- http://www.mandriva.com/security/advisories?name=MDVSA-2013:085 vendor-advisoryx_refsource_MANDRIVA
- http://www.mandriva.com/security/advisories?name=MDVSA-2013:086 vendor-advisoryx_refsource_MANDRIVA
- https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2009-5079 Vendor Advisory
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2009-5079
- https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2009-5079
| Link | Providers | Tags |
|---|---|---|
| http://cvsweb.openwall.com/cgi/cvsweb.cgi/Owl/packages/groff/groff-1.20.1-owl-tmp.diff | x_refsource_CONFIRMPatch | |
| http://cvsweb.openwall.com/cgi/cvsweb.cgi/Owl/packages/groff/groff-1.20.1-owl-tmp.diff.diff?r1=1.1%3Br2=1.2%3Bf=h | x_refsource_CONFIRM | |
| http://openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2009/08/14/4 | mailing-listx_refsource_MLIST | |
| http://openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2009/08/14/5 | mailing-listx_refsource_MLISTPatch | |
| http://www.mandriva.com/security/advisories?name=MDVSA-2013:085 | vendor-advisoryx_refsource_MANDRIVA | |
| http://www.mandriva.com/security/advisories?name=MDVSA-2013:086 | vendor-advisoryx_refsource_MANDRIVA | |
| https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2009-5079 | Vendor Advisory | |
| https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2009-5079 | ||
| https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2009-5079 |
Change history (0)
No recorded changes yet.