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CVE-2017-12164: A flaw was discovered in gdm 3.24.1 where gdm greeter was no longer setting the ran_once boolean during aut...

A flaw was discovered in gdm 3.24.1 where gdm greeter was no longer setting the ran_once boolean during autologin. If autologin was enabled for a victim, an attacker could simply select 'login as another user' to unlock their screen.

MediumCVSS 4.1Not KEV-listedUpdated
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Glexia's TakeAutomated analysismoderate

Security readout for executives and security teams

Plain-English summary

This vulnerability affects GNOME gdm 3.24.1 when autologin is enabled. A person with physical access could bypass the lock screen and access the victim’s desktop session. The risk is mainly to shared workstations, kiosks, lab systems, or unattended Linux desktops using autologin.

Executive priority

Treat this as a moderate local-access risk. It is not internet-exploitable based on the provided evidence, but it can undermine workstation access controls where autologin is enabled, especially in shared or unattended environments.

Technical view

gdm greeter 3.24.1 failed to set the ran_once boolean during autologin. Under the affected condition, greeter state handling could permit a lock-screen bypass. The CVSS 3.0 score is 4.1 with physical attack vector, low complexity, no privileges, user interaction required, and low confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact.

Likely exposure

Exposure is likely limited to systems running GNOME gdm 3.24.1 with autologin enabled. Systems without autologin, remote-only servers, or non-GDM login managers are not indicated as affected by the provided sources.

Exploitation context

The source bundle does not show active exploitation, and the CVE is not listed as KEV. Exploitation requires physical access and a victim environment with autologin enabled, making this more relevant to local workstation security than internet-facing exposure.

Researcher notes

The key condition is autologin on gdm 3.24.1. Evidence points to a greeter state bug involving ran_once. The provided sources include an upstream GNOME commit and Red Hat Bugzilla reference, but no confirmed active exploitation or explicit fixed version in the bundle.

Mitigation direction

  • Identify systems running GNOME gdm 3.24.1.
  • Check vendor or distribution advisories for the update containing the GNOME fix.
  • Disable autologin where it is not operationally required.
  • Prioritize shared, kiosk, lab, and unattended desktop systems.
  • Apply supported vendor packages rather than manually changing greeter internals.

Validation and detection

  • Inventory Linux desktop systems using GNOME gdm.
  • Confirm whether autologin is enabled on affected workstations.
  • Verify installed gdm versions against vendor advisory status.
  • Review physical-access controls for exposed workstations.
  • Confirm remediation through package version or vendor advisory evidence.
Prepared
Confidence
high
Sources
4

Public sources used

Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.

Potential ATT&CK relevance

Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context

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ATT&CK lookup starting points

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cwe · low confidence lookup

CWE-592: Exact CWE lookup

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cve · low confidence lookup

CVE-2017-12164 mapping review

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Vulnerability profileCVE Program record
Severity
Medium
CVSS
4.1 (3.0)
Known Exploited
No
Published

Vector: CVSS:3.0/AV:P/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L

Official CVE source material

CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5

These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.

1CVSS vectors
0Timeline events
0ADP providers
3Source links

CVSS vector scores

1 official score

We collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.

ScoreVersionSeverityVectorExploitImpactSource
4.1CVSS 3.0MediumCVSS:3.0/AV:P/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L0.73.4Primary CVE score

Vulnerability scoring details

Base CVSS 3.0 score

4.1Medium
CVSS 3.0 vector shape for CVE-2017-12164Attack VectorAttack ComplexityPrivileges RequiredUser InteractionScopeConfidentiality ImpactIntegrity ImpactAvailability Impact

Vector: CVSS:3.0/AV:P/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L

Attack Vector
NetworkAdjacentLocalPhysical
Attack Complexity
LowHigh
Privileges Required
NoneLowHigh
User Interaction
NoneRequired
Scope
ChangedUnchanged
Confidentiality Impact
HighLowNone
Integrity Impact
HighLowNone
Availability Impact
HighLowNone

Source materials

Affected products

Products and packages named in the record

VendorProductVersion / packageStatus
GNOMEgdm3.24.1Listed
Weakness

CWE details

CWE-592

CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.

CWE-592 · source CWE mapping

DEPRECATED: Authentication Bypass Issues

DEPRECATED: Authentication Bypass Issues represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.

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