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Ubuntu 20.04 PackageKit Important Privilege Escalation Vuln USN-8195-3

ubuntu
Calendar Grey April 29, 2026
Scroller Ubuntu
PackageKit for Ubuntu received an update to fix a security issue that allowed local package installs as root.
PackageKit could be made to install packages as the administrator.

Summary

PackageKit could be made to install packages as the administrator.

Software Description:

- packagekit: Provides a package management service

Details:

USN-8195-1 fixed a vulnerability in PackageKit. This update provides

the corresponding fix to Ubuntu 16.04 LTS, Ubuntu 18.04 LTS and

Ubuntu 20.04 LTS.

Original advisory details:

It was discovered that PackageKit incorrectly handled certain transactions.

A local attacker could use this issue to install arbitrary packages as

root, possibly resulting in privilege escalation.

Topics%20covered

Topics Covered

security advisory privilege escalation Ubuntu important PackageKit arbitrary package install

Update Instructions

The problem can be corrected by updating your system to the following
package versions:

Ubuntu 20.04 LTS
  packagekit                      1.1.13-2ubuntu1.1+esm1
                                  Available with Ubuntu Pro

Ubuntu 18.04 LTS
  packagekit                      1.1.9-1ubuntu2.18.04.6+esm1
                                  Available with Ubuntu Pro

Ubuntu 16.04 LTS
  packagekit                      0.8.17-4ubuntu6~gcc5.4ubuntu1.5+esm1
                                  Available with Ubuntu Pro

After a standard system update you need to reboot your computer to make
all the necessary changes.

References

https://ubuntu.com/security/notices/USN-8195-3

https://ubuntu.com/security/notices/USN-8195-2

https://ubuntu.com/security/notices/USN-8195-1

CVE-2026-41651

Severity
important
Lowest
Low
Medium
High
Critical

Ubuntu Security Notice USN-8195-3

Topics%20covered

Topics Covered

security advisory privilege escalation Ubuntu important PackageKit arbitrary package install

Package Information

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