Understanding privilege escalation in Unix/Linux systems
Privilege escalation in Unix/Linux systems refers to the process of gaining higher-level access rights than those initially granted to a user or application. This concept is fundamental to system security and is a key focus for both system administrators and pentesters.
In Unix/Linux environments, the privilege system is primarily based on user and group permissions. The root user, with a user ID of 0, has unrestricted access to the entire system. Regular users have limited permissions, typically confined to their home directories and specific system resources.
Privilege escalation can be categorized into two main types:
- Vertical privilege escalation: This involves elevating privileges from a lower-level user to a higher-level user, often targeting root access. An example is a standard user gaining root privileges.
- Horizontal privilege escalation: This occurs when a user gains access to resources or performs...
