CVE-2015-5287
CVE-2015-5287 is a security flaw in Red Hat Automatic Bug Reporting Tool. Someone who already has a foothold can use Red Hat Automatic Bug Reporting Tool to take full control of the machine. The US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) added it to its catalog of flaws known to be used in attacks on 26 Aug 2026.[1]
Red Hat Automatic Bug Reporting Tool is business software or equipment. Most families won’t have it, but attackers break into it to get inside companies, and from there to what those companies hold about their customers, patients and staff.
Description
CISA calls it a privilege escalation in Red Hat Automatic Bug Reporting Tool. In its words: “Red Hat Automatic Bug Reporting Tool (ABRT) contains a privilege escalation vulnerability that could allow local users with certain permissions to gain privileges via a symlink attack on a file with a predictable name. The impacted product(s) could be end-of-life (EoL) and/or end-of-service (EoS). Users are advised to discontinue use and/or transition to a supported version.”[1]
The underlying weakness is CWE-59, in MITRE’s list of common software weaknesses.[2]
It scores 7.8 out of 10 on the Common Vulnerability Scoring System, which rates it high, scored by NVD using CVSS 3.1.[2]
Affected versions
NVD’s record doesn’t list version ranges for it. CISA names the product as Red Hat Automatic Bug Reporting Tool.
Most families won’t have Red Hat Automatic Bug Reporting Tool; it’s for whoever looks after IT at work.
Exploitation
CISA added it to its catalog of known exploited vulnerabilities on 26 Aug 2026, 3,915 days after it was made public. CISA lists a flaw only when it has reliable evidence of it being exploited, and gave US federal agencies until 9 Sep 2026 to fix it.[1]
FIRST’s Exploit Prediction Scoring System, which estimates how likely a flaw is to be used in attacks in the next 30 days from what it sees across the internet, puts it at 5%. That’s in the top 8% of the flaws it scores.[3]
CISA assesses it as not automatable: each attack takes some work.
CISA doesn’t say who was attacked, or how.
Fix
CISA’s required action: “Apply mitigations in accordance with vendor instructions, ensuring compliance with CISA’s BOD 26-04 Prioritizing Security Updates Based on Risk (see URL in Notes) guidance and CISA’s “Forensics Triage Requirements” (see URL in Notes).”[1]
- Check whether you use it.Red Hat Automatic Bug Reporting Tool is business software or equipment, so most families won’t have it. If you run a business, or work from home on company equipment, ask whoever looks after your IT.
- Send this page to your IT person.Ask them to confirm it’s fixed, or not in use. CISA gave US government agencies until 9 Sep 2026 to fix it.
- If it can’t be fixed, take it offline.CISA’s advice when there’s no fix is to stop using the product, or take it off the internet, until there is one.
You can’t fix someone else’s server, but you can watch for what follows a break-in like this: a breach notice, a password reset you didn’t ask for, or a scam message that knows things it shouldn’t. HARD watches for those for you and your family.
Timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| The flaw is made public in the National Vulnerability Database, with a severity score of 7.8.[2] | |
| CISA adds it to its catalog of flaws known to be used in attacks.[1] | |
| CISA’s deadline for US government agencies to fix it.[1] | |
| FIRST puts the odds of it being used in attacks in the next 30 days at 5%.[3] |
See also
Other Red Hat flaws
- CVE-2015-3246, Red Hat Libuser: race condition ·
- CVE-2018-14667, Red Hat JBoss RichFaces Framework: expression language injection ·
- CVE-2021-3560, Red Hat Polkit: incorrect authorization ·
- CVE-2021-4034, Red Hat Polkit: out-of-bounds read and write ·
- CVE-2010-1428, Red Hat JBoss: information disclosure ·
Similar flaws
- CVE-2026-81963, Microsoft Windows: link following ·
- CVE-2026-41091, Microsoft Defender: link following ·
- CVE-2025-60710, Microsoft Windows: link following ·
- CVE-2025-48384, Git: link following ·
- CVE-2025-21391, Microsoft Windows: storage link following ·
Added the same day
- CVE-2026-8452, Citrix NetScaler ADC and NetScaler Gateway: improper restriction of operations within the bounds of a memory buffer ·
- CVE-2022-0995, Linux Kernel: out-of-bounds write ·
- CVE-2021-23758, Ajax.NET Professional: deserialization of untrusted data ·
- CVE-2019-1068, Microsoft SQL Server: remote code execution ·
- CVE-2015-3246, Red Hat Libuser: race condition ·
Every Red Hat flaw on CISA’s list · Everything added in August 2026
References
- ^ Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. “Red Hat Automatic Bug Reporting Tool Privilege Escalation Vulnerability”. Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog, added 26 Aug 2026.
- ^ National Institute of Standards and Technology. “CVE-2015-5287 Detail”. National Vulnerability Database, published 7 Dec 2015.
- ^ FIRST. “Exploit Prediction Scoring System”. EPSS 0.050, percentile 92.2, 31 Oct 2026.
- CVE Program. “CVE-2015-5287”. The official CVE record.
This article is built from CISA’s catalog (version 2026.10.30), NVD’s record and FIRST’s scores, kept in HARD’s database and checked every morning. The plain English is HARD’s.