CVE-2025-34274
Nagios Log Server ≤ 2024
Raw vector
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:XSummary
CVE-2025-34274 is a critical-severity Execution with Unnecessary Privileges (CWE-250) vulnerability in Nagios Log Server. Its CVSS base score is 9.3 (Critical).
Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploitation for Privilege Escalation (T1068); ranked in the top 22% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog; a public proof-of-concept is referenced.
The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to AC-6 (Least Privilege) — see the control section below for these in your framework.
Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary
Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.
CVE-2025-34274 is an execution with unnecessary privileges vulnerability (CWE-250) affecting Nagios Log Server versions prior to 2024R2.0.3. The issue stems from the software's embedded Logstash process running as the root user, which elevates the potential impact of any compromise in this network-facing component. The vulnerability has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 9.8 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H), highlighting its critical severity due to high confidentiality, integrity, and availability impacts.
A remote, unauthenticated attacker can exploit this vulnerability by first compromising the Logstash process, such as through an insecure plugin, pipeline configuration injection, or a flaw in input parsing. Once compromised, the attacker gains the ability to execute arbitrary code with root privileges, leading to full system compromise on the affected Nagios Log Server host.
Nagios advisories indicate that the vulnerability is addressed in version 2024R2.0.3 by modifying the Logstash service to run as the lower-privileged 'nagios' user rather than root, thereby reducing the risk for this service that processes untrusted input or third-party components. Additional details are available in the Nagios Log Server changelog at https://www.nagios.com/changelog/#log-server, the security advisories page at https://www.nagios.com/products/security/#log-server-2024R2, and the VulnCheck advisory at https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/nagios-log-server-logstash-process-root-privileges. Security practitioners should upgrade to the patched version and review Logstash configurations for potential entry points.
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2025-37221
Vulnerability Data
Nagios Log Server versions prior to 2024R2.0.3 contain an execution with unnecessary privileges vulnerability as it runs its embedded Logstash process as the root user. If an attacker is able to compromise the Logstash process - for example by exploiting…
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an insecure plugin, pipeline configuration injection, or a vulnerability in input parsing - the attacker could execute code with root privileges, resulting in full system compromise. The Logstash service has been altered to run as the lower-privileged 'nagios' user to reduce this risk associated with a network-facing service that can accept untrusted input or load third-party components.
- CWE(s)
Related Threats
MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques
CVEs Like This One
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Control response
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- 6 hardening rules · 6 OS baselines
V10.2.3V13.2.2
Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI
Least privilege directly requires that only the minimum necessary authorizations are granted, structurally eliminating execution with unnecessary privileges.
Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
PR.AA-05 directly enforces least privilege so largely eliminates CWE-250 at design time, yet the weakness can still arise from runtime escalation paths, third-party code, or misapplied role definitions outside this single control.
Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
Requiring explicit justification and time-limited grants discourages the routine allocation of unnecessary privileges that would otherwise allow execution with more rights than required.
Restricting privileged utilities to the fewest trusted users and requiring explicit authorization directly stops developers or operators from embedding or invoking code that runs with unnecessary elevated rights.
Mandating separate non-privileged identities for routine work and restricting privileged accounts to administrative tasks reduces the chance that everyday operations run with unnecessary elevated rights.
The control explicitly calls for minimizing privileged identities and disabling unnecessary accounts, thereby reducing the number of processes that run with unnecessary privileges.
The requirement to restrict privileged access and apply segregation of duties limits the number of processes or accounts that must run with elevated rights, lowering the impact of unnecessary privilege assignments.
Forcing distinct roles for initiating versus executing changes reduces the chance that an individual will run with unnecessary privileges to perform both steps.
Hardening callouts derived
Configuration rules from DISA STIG baselines that bear on weaknesses of the type cited by this CVE. Each rule is shown with the relationship its mapping actually records, against the CWE it was authored against. Derived via CVE→CWE over `controls_xwalks` (authoritative rows only; rows rated `none` are excluded).
Windows 10 (1 rule)
- V-220712 Only accounts responsible for the administration of a system must have Administrator rights on the system. prevents CWE-250
Windows 11 (1 rule)
- V-253269 Only accounts responsible for the administration of a system must have Administrator rights on the system. prevents CWE-250
Windows Server 2016 (1 rule)
- V-225007 Only administrators responsible for the member server or standalone or nondomain-joined system must have Administrator rights on the system. prevents CWE-250
Windows Server 2019 (1 rule)
- V-205746 Windows Server 2019 must only allow Administrators responsible for the member server or standalone or nondomain-joined system to have Administrator rights on the system. prevents CWE-250
Windows Server 2022 (1 rule)
- V-254428 Windows Server 2022 must only allow administrators responsible for the member server or standalone or nondomain-joined system to have Administrator rights on the system. prevents CWE-250