pack2theroot (CVE-2026-41651) + --auto accuracy work
Adds the third ported module — Pack2TheRoot, a userspace PackageKit
D-Bus TOCTOU LPE — and spends real effort hardening --auto so its
detect step gives an accurate, robust verdict before deploying.
pack2theroot (CVE-2026-41651):
- Ported from the public Vozec PoC
(github.com/Vozec/CVE-2026-41651). Original disclosure by the
Deutsche Telekom security team.
- Two back-to-back InstallFiles D-Bus calls (SIMULATE then NONE)
overwrite the cached transaction flags between polkit auth and
dispatch. GLib priority ordering makes the overwrite deterministic,
not a timing race; postinst of the malicious .deb drops a SUID bash
in /tmp.
- detect() reads PackageKit's VersionMajor/Minor/Micro directly over
D-Bus and compares against the pinned fix release 1.3.5 (commit
76cfb675). This is a high-confidence verdict, not precondition-only.
- Debian-family only (PoC builds its own .deb in pure C; ar/ustar/
gzip-stored inline). Cleanup removes /tmp .debs + best-effort
unlinks /tmp/.suid_bash + sudo -n dpkg -r the staging packages.
- Adds an optional GLib/GIO build dependency. The top-level Makefile
autodetects via `pkg-config gio-2.0`; when absent the module
compiles as a stub returning PRECOND_FAIL.
- Embedded auditd + sigma rules cover the file-side footprint
(/tmp/.suid_bash, /tmp/.pk-*.deb, non-root dpkg/apt execve).
--auto accuracy improvements:
- Auto-enables --active before the scan. Per-module sentinel probes
(page-cache /tmp files, fork-isolated namespace mounts) turn
version-only checks into definitive verdicts, so silent distro
backports don't fool the scan and --auto won't pick blind on
TEST_ERROR.
- Per-module verdict printing — every module's result is shown
(VULNERABLE / patched / precondition / indeterminate), not just
VULNERABLE rows. Operator sees the full picture.
- Scan-end summary line: "N vulnerable, M patched/n.a., K
precondition-fail, L indeterminate" with a separate callout when
modules crashed.
- Distro fingerprint added to the auto banner (ID + VERSION_ID from
/etc/os-release alongside kernel/arch).
- Fork-isolated detect() — each detector runs in a child process so
a SIGILL/SIGSEGV in one module's probe is contained and the scan
continues. Surfaced live while testing: entrybleed's prefetchnta
KASLR sweep SIGILLs on emulated CPUs (linuxkit on darwin); without
isolation the whole --auto died at module 7 of 31. With isolation
the scan reports "detect() crashed (signal 4) — continuing" and
finishes cleanly.
module_safety_rank additions:
- pack2theroot: 95 (userspace D-Bus TOCTOU; dpkg + /tmp SUID footprint
— clean but heavier than pwnkit's gconv-modules-only path).
- dirtydecrypt / fragnesia: 86 (page-cache writes; one step below the
verified copy_fail/dirty_frag family at 88 to prefer verified
modules when both apply).
Docs:
- README badge / tagline / tier table / ⚪ block / example output /
v0.5.0 status — all updated to "28 verified + 3 ported".
- CVES.md counts line, the ported-modules note (now calling out
pack2theroot's high-confidence detect vs. precondition-only for
the page-cache pair), inventory row, operations table row.
- ROADMAP Phase 7+: pack2theroot moved out of carry-overs into the
"landed (ported, pending VM verification)" group; added a new
"--auto accuracy work" subsection documenting the dispatcher
hardening landed in this commit.
- docs/index.html: scanning-count example bumped to 31, status line
updated to mention 3 ported modules.
Build verification: full `make clean && make` in `docker gcc:latest`
with libglib2.0-dev installed: links into a 31-module skeletonkey
ELF (413KB), `--list` shows all modules including pack2theroot,
`--detect-rules --format=auditd` emits the new pack2theroot section,
`--auto --i-know --no-shell` exercises the new banner + active
probes + verdict table + fork isolation + scan summary end-to-end.
Only build warning is the pre-existing
`-Wunterminated-string-initialization` in dirty_pipe (not introduced
here).
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# NOTICE — pack2theroot
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## Vulnerability
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**CVE-2026-41651** — Pack2TheRoot. PackageKit TOCTOU local privilege
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escalation in `src/pk-transaction.c`: two cooperating bugs allow
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`cached_transaction_flags` and `cached_full_paths` to be overwritten
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between polkit authorisation and dispatch, and a third bug causes the
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dispatcher to read those cached values at fire time rather than at
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authorisation time. GLib's D-Bus-vs-idle priority ordering makes the
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overwrite deterministic, not a timing race.
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CVSS 8.1. Affects PackageKit `1.0.2` through `1.3.4` (over a decade
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of releases). Fixed in **PackageKit 1.3.5** (upstream commit
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`76cfb675`, 2026-04-22).
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## Research credit
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Discovered and disclosed by the **Deutsche Telekom security team**.
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> Telekom advisory: <https://github.security.telekom.com/2026/04/pack2theroot-linux-local-privilege-escalation.html>
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> Upstream advisory: <https://github.com/PackageKit/PackageKit/security/advisories/GHSA-f55j-vvr9-69xv>
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The standalone proof-of-concept exploit the SKELETONKEY module is
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ported from is by **Vozec**:
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> Reference PoC: <https://github.com/Vozec/CVE-2026-41651>
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The Vozec repository carries no `LICENSE` file at the time of porting;
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the SKELETONKEY-distributed `skeletonkey_modules.c` is original
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SKELETONKEY-licensed code (MIT) that reproduces the PoC's deb-builder
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(ar / ustar / gzip-stored) and D-Bus call sequence. Independent
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research credit belongs to the people above.
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A CTF-style lab by **dinosn** (Dockerised PackageKit 1.3.4 build with
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the exploit pre-set) is a useful reference bench:
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> CTF lab: <https://github.com/dinosn/pack2theroot-lab>
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## SKELETONKEY role
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`skeletonkey_modules.c` wraps the PoC in the standard
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`skeletonkey_module` detect / exploit / cleanup interface, adds the
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embedded auditd + sigma rules, and reads PackageKit's
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`VersionMajor/Minor/Micro` D-Bus properties so `detect()` can give a
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high-confidence verdict (the fix release 1.3.5 is officially pinned —
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no version-fabrication caveat).
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## Verification status
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**Ported, not yet validated end-to-end on a vulnerable host.** See
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`MODULE.md` for the recommended verification path (Vozec's Dockerised
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PackageKit-1.3.4 bench).
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