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Security Digest · Vulnerability record

CVE-2024-12747: Rsync: race condition in rsync handling symbolic links

A flaw was found in rsync. This vulnerability arises from a race condition during rsync's handling of symbolic links.

CVSS 5.6 Medium EPSS 0.4% · p31 Check exposure

Updated By erroneo.us Security Desk12 references

Should you act?

Normal patch cycle

No exploitation signal; fix it in your next routine update if you are affected. This signal is computed from CISA KEV, EPSS and CVSS data; it is not an editorial verdict.

  • No confirmed exploitation. It is not in CISA’s KEV catalog and CISA’s SSVC assessment records no known exploitation. That can change quickly after a public write-up; re-check if you are affected.
  • EPSS 0.4%, percentile 31: FIRST’s model estimates a 0.4% chance of exploitation activity in the next 30 days, higher than 31% of all scored CVEs (low). EPSS is a probability, not a verdict.
  • Needs local access needed. Lower urgency for most teams unless an attacker could already run code on the machine.
  • Editorial verdict: Check exposure. rsync: Six Flaws Incl. Daemon Heap Overflow (CVE-2024-12084) — Distros shipped fixes in January 2025 and there is no known exploitation, but internet-facing rsync daemons have since needed two more security releases, so verify you run a current rsync rather than just 3.4.0.

What it is

A flaw was found in rsync. This vulnerability arises from a race condition during rsync's handling of symbolic links. Rsync's default behavior when encountering symbolic links is to skip them. If an attacker replaced a regular file with a symbolic link at the right time, it was possible to bypass the default behavior and traverse symbolic links. Depending on the privileges of the rsync process, an attacker could leak sensitive information, potentially leading to privilege escalation.

Weakness type: CWE-362.

Product: rsync · Assigned by: redhat · Published: 2025-01-14

Affected and fixed versions

VendorProductAffected versions (per CVE record)
rsync<= 3.3.0
Red HatRed Hat Enterprise Linux 10see vendor advisory
Red HatRed Hat Enterprise Linux 8see vendor advisory
Red HatRed Hat Enterprise Linux 9see vendor advisory
Red HatRed Hat Enterprise Linux 9see vendor advisory
Red HatRed Hat Discovery 1.14see vendor advisory
Red HatRed Hat Enterprise Linux 6see vendor advisory
Red HatRed Hat Enterprise Linux 7see vendor advisory
Red HatRed Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4see vendor advisory

Severity scores

Scored byCVSSScoreVector
redhat3.15.6 MediumCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:N
  • Attack vector: local access needed
  • Attack complexity: high (needs special conditions)
  • Privileges required: low (any account)
  • User interaction: none
  • Scope: changed (can affect other components)

CVSS measures how bad a flaw is if exploited, not how likely exploitation is. Read it next to the exploitation data below.

Exploitation and urgency

  • CISA KEV: not listed (no confirmed in-the-wild exploitation known to CISA).
  • CISA SSVC assessment: exploitation none, automatable no, technical impact partial.
  • FIRST EPSS (model of 2026-10-21): 0.39% probability of exploitation activity in the next 30 days; percentile 31.

Timeline

Sources and references

Original sources first. Version and fix details should always be confirmed against the vendor or project advisory.

Vendor and project advisories, patches

  1. RHBA-2025:6470 access.redhat.com
  2. RHSA-2025:2600 access.redhat.com
  3. RHSA-2025:7050 access.redhat.com
  4. RHSA-2025:8385 access.redhat.com

Vulnerability records

  1. CVE.org record CVE-2024-12747 cve.org
  2. NVD entry CVE-2024-12747 nvd.nist.gov

Other references from the CVE record and advisory

  1. access.redhat.com access.redhat.com
  2. RHBZ#2332968 bugzilla.redhat.com
  3. kb.cert.org kb.cert.org
  4. security.netapp.com security.netapp.com
  5. lists.debian.org lists.debian.org
  6. kb.cert.org kb.cert.org

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