CVE-2026-14474
Description
A flaw was found in SSSD's LDAP sudo provider. When the ldap_sudo_search_base option is not explicitly configured, SSSD searches the entire LDAP directory tree for sudoRole objects. An authenticated attacker with write access to any subtree can inject a sudoRole object granting root-level sudo privileges on all SSSD-enrolled hosts.
Statement
Red Hat has rated this as Important because the attack requires only low-privilege delegated LDAP write access to any subtree, which is a common delegation pattern in enterprise environments. The default ldap_sudo_search_base configuration searches the entire directory tree, allowing sudo rule injection from outside the intended sudoers container.
Mitigation
Set ldap_sudo_search_base explicitly in /etc/sssd/sssd.conf to restrict the search to the designated sudoers container:
[domain/example.com] ldap_sudo_search_base = ou=sudoers,dc=example,dc=com
Additionally, restrict LDAP ACLs to prevent non-admin principals from creating sudoRole objects outside the designated sudoers container.
Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) Score Details
Info alert:Important note
CVSS scores for open source components depend on vendor-specific factors (e.g. version or build chain). Therefore, Red Hat's score and impact rating can be different from NVD and other vendors. Red Hat remains the authoritative CVE Naming Authority (CNA) source for its products and services (see Red Hat classifications).
CVSS v3 Score Breakdown
| Red Hat | NVD | cve.org | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base Score | 8.8 | N/A | 8.8 |
| Attack Vector | Network | N/A | Network |
| Attack Complexity | Low | N/A | Low |
| Privileges Required | Low | N/A | Low |
| User Interaction | None | N/A | None |
| Scope | Unchanged | N/A | Unchanged |
| Confidentiality | High | N/A | High |
| Integrity Impact | High | N/A | High |
| Availability Impact | High | N/A | High |
Vector
Red Hat: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
cve.org: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Understanding the Weakness (CWE)
Other
Technical Impact: Varies by Context
The impact of insecure defaults varies widely depending on the functionality that the product controls.
Acknowledgements
This issue was discovered by Ian Murphy (Red Hat).
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