CVE-2019-3689 | nfs-utils: root-owned files stored in insecure /var/lib/nfs directory

The nfs-utils package in SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12 before and including version 1.3.0-34.18.1 and in SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 before and including version 2.1.1-6.10.2 the directory /var/lib/nfs is owned by statd:nogroup. This directory contains files owned and managed by root. If statd is compromised, it can therefore trick processes running with root privileges into creating/overwriting files anywhere on the system.

Published: 2019-09-19 Last update: 2026-06-16 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Modified，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2019-3689 is rated Moderate Risk (46.3/100): CVSS Medium severity, with medium exploitation likelihood (EPSS 1.50%). EPSS rose +1.16% over the last day, indicating growing attacker interest. Review affected assets and schedule remediation.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2019-3689

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2026-06-15 0.34% 1.50% +1.16%
2 2026-01-07 0.21% 0.34% +0.13%
3 2025-11-21 — 0.21% —

Full EPSS history (22 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2019-3689

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
5.1 3.1 MEDIUM
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:L Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:L)
They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:N)
Doesn’t really leak secrets in a meaningful way.
Integrity (I:L)
Attackers could change some data, but it’s limited—not everything goes.
Availability (A:L)
Might cause slowdowns, glitches, or partial disruption—not a full brick.
 2.5 2.5 [email protected]
9.8 3.1 CRITICAL
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
 3.9 5.9 [email protected]
10.0 2.0 HIGH
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C Click to expand
Access vector (AV:N)
Can be exploited remotely over network reachability.
Access complexity (AC:L)
Exploitation conditions are straightforward and predictable.
Authentication (AU:N)
No authentication is required.
Confidentiality impact (C:C)
Complete confidentiality impact.
Integrity impact (I:C)
Complete integrity impact.
Availability impact (A:C)
Complete availability impact.
 10.0 10.0 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2019-3689

OS Trackers for CVE-2019-3689

vendor priority summary link
debian not yet assigned CVE-2019-3689 not yet assigned priority: Debian including 1 source packages (nfs-utils), 5 status rows across 5 suites (bookworm, bullseye, forky, sid, trixie): resolved 5. https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2019-3689
redhat medium — https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2019-3689
suse high CVE-2019-3689 severity important: SUSE including 314 source package names (0.38.1:nfs-client-2.1.1-10.4.1, 0.38.1:nfs-kernel-server-2.1.1-10.4.1, …), 601 product×package rows across 173 product lines (Container ses/6/cephcsi/cephcsi, Container ses/6/rook/ceph, … (173 product lines)): Fixed 441, Known Affected 157, Known Not Affected 3. https://www.suse.com/security/cve/CVE-2019-3689/
ubuntu low CVE-2019-3689 low priority: Ubuntu including 1 source packages (nfs-utils), 18 status rows across 18 suites (bionic, disco, eoan, focal, groovy, hirsute, impish, jammy, kinetic, lunar, mantic, noble, oracular, plucky, questing, trusty, upstream, xenial): released 16, ignored 1, needed 1. https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2019-3689

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2019-3689

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
linux-nfs nfs-utils <= 1.3.0-34.18.1 cpe:2.3:a:linux-nfs:nfs-utils:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux-nfs nfs-utils <= 2.1.1-6.10.2 cpe:2.3:a:linux-nfs:nfs-utils:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2019-3689

cvelogic Threat Intelligence