CVE-2014-5284

OSSEC < 2.8.0 - Privilege Escalation via Predictable Temporary File Handling

Title source: llm
STIX 2.1

Exploitation Summary

EIP tracks 2 public exploits for CVE-2014-5284. PoCs published by skynet-13, mbadanoiu.

AI-analyzed exploit summary This exploit leverages a race condition in ossec 2.8's insecure temporary file creation to escalate privileges. It monitors /tmp for file changes and injects a malicious entry into hosts.deny to execute arbitrary commands as root.

Description

host-deny.sh in OSSEC before 2.8.1 writes to temporary files with predictable filenames without verifying ownership, which allows local users to modify access restrictions in hosts.deny and gain root privileges by creating the temporary files before automatic IP blocking is performed.

Exploits (2)

exploitdb WORKING POC VERIFIED
by skynet-13 · pythonlocallinux
https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/35234

This exploit leverages a race condition in ossec 2.8's insecure temporary file creation to escalate privileges. It monitors /tmp for file changes and injects a malicious entry into hosts.deny to execute arbitrary commands as root.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Lpe
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Racy
Target: ossec-hids 2.8
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Local access to the target system · ossec-hids 2.8 installed · Ability to trigger SSH authentication failures
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC
by mbadanoiu · poc
https://github.com/mbadanoiu/CVE-2014-5284

This repository contains a privilege escalation exploit for CVE-2014-5284, targeting OSSEC 2.8's insecure temporary file creation vulnerability. The exploit monitors /tmp for file changes and injects a command into a temporary hosts.deny file, which is then executed as root when SSH is accessed.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Lpe
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: OSSEC 2.8
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Access to the target system · inotify-tools installed or available
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →

References (3)

Core 3
Core References
Patch, Vendor Advisory x_refsource_confirm
https://github.com/ossec/ossec-hids/releases/tag/2.8.1
Exploit exploit x_refsource_exploit-db
http://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/35234

Scores

EPSS 0.0250
EPSS Percentile 82.6%

Details

CWE
CWE-264
Status published
Products (1)
ossec/ossec < 2.8.0
Published Dec 02, 2014
Tracked Since Feb 18, 2026