CVE Intelligence
High Access control

CVE-2019-14869 — A flaw was found in all versions of ghostscript 9.x before 9.28, where the `.charkeys` procedure,...

A flaw was found in all versions of ghostscript 9.x before 9.50, where the `.charkeys` procedure, where it did not properly secure its privileged calls, enabling scripts to bypass `-dSAFER` restrictions. An attacker could abuse this flaw by creating a specially crafted PostScript file that could escalate privileges within the Ghostscript and access files outside of restricted areas or execute commands.

Published Nov 15, 2019 · Updated Oct 20, 2026 · Sources: NIST National Vulnerability Database, CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP, GitHub Security Advisories · CNA: redhat

Who exploits it and how urgent it is

A 0–100 score combining confirmed exploitation, ransomware and APT use, public exploits, EPSS and severity.

No exploitation signal in the sources consulted so far.
How the score was calculated
  • EPSS 4.5% (30-day exploitation probability)+14
  • Technical severity (high)+6

The score orders the patch queue; it does not replace your asset context (internet exposure, criticality, compensating controls).

Triage

Is it exploited, how likely is exploitation, what does it touch, and how severe do the sources call it.

Exploitation
Not confirmed
Not in CISA KEV — an absence of record, not proof it is unexploited.
EPSS FIRST
4.5%
ahead of 91% of scored CVEs · Oct 20, 2026
Affects
Artifex
Ghostscript and 2 more
CVSS base
8.8
High · 3 source(s)

Remediation

Fixes and mitigations documented by the sources — linked to the original advisory.

First 24 hours

Ordered from the record’s own fields — exposure first, because you cannot patch what you have not found. A rule-generated starting point.

  1. Identify exposed assets running the affected vendor/product/version combinations (Artifex Ghostscript, Fedoraproject Fedora, Ghostscript Ghostscript…).
  2. The attack is network-based and needs no privileges: restrict exposure (ACLs, VPN, WAF) until patched.
  3. Apply the fixed version or the patch documented under Remediation.
  4. Exploitation requires user interaction: tighten email/web filtering and warn affected users.
  5. EPSS ahead of 91% of scored CVEs: prioritize it in the patch queue.
  6. Search available logs for exploit probes matching the vulnerability class (access control), errors and authentication anomalies.

Affected scope

Vendor, product and versions as the sources word them.

VendorProductVersionsStatusSource
Artifex Ghostscript ≥ 9.00 and < 9.50 Vulnerable NIST National Vulnerability Database
Fedoraproject Fedora version 29version 30version 31 Vulnerable NIST National Vulnerability Database
Ghostscript Ghostscript version all versions of ghostscript 9.x before 9.28 Vulnerable CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Opensuse Leap version 15.0version 15.1 Vulnerable NIST National Vulnerability Database

Attack characteristics

The CVSS vector, decoded. It describes the attack, not your exposure to it.

Attack vector
Network
Attack complexity
Low
Privileges required
None
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

Every base score collected

Sources score independently and may disagree; each row says who scored it and under which version.

ScoreVersionSeverityExpl.ImpactScored by
8.8 CVSS 3.1 High 2.8 5.9 nvd@nist.gov via NIST National Vulnerability Database
7.3 CVSS 3.0 High 3.9 3.4 secalert@redhat.com via NIST National Vulnerability Database
7.3 CVSS 3.0 High — — redhat via CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
6.8 CVSS 2.0 Medium 8.6 6.4 nvd@nist.gov via NIST National Vulnerability Database
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H (score shown at the top: nvd@nist.gov)
Scoring entities (NIST, CNA, ADP) score independently; each score is shown with its origin. For prioritization we use 8.8 (NVD (NIST)) as a conservative provisional reference — not a definitive official score.

Weakness MITRE

Weakness class according to MITRE’s CWE catalog.

CWE-732 · Incorrect Permission Assignment for Critical Resource

Other CVEs with this weakness →

EPSS over time FIRST

Oct 19, 2026 → Oct 20, 2026 · 2 reading(s) · max 4.50%

Detection

Read off the CVSS vector and the weakness class. Starting points, not tested rules.

  • Prioritize edge telemetry for the network-reachable component (proxy, WAF, IDS/IPS).
  • Audit administrative actions and access to resources outside each user’s normal pattern.
web/proxy/WAF logsnetwork IDS/IPSauthentication logsapplication logs

Timeline

What happened to this CVE, newest first.

  • 2026
  • Affected products added · ghostscript/ghostscript
    Oct 20, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
  • Record published
    Oct 20, 2026
  • Fix documented
    Oct 20, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • Affected products added · artifex/ghostscript, fedoraproject/fedora, opensuse/leap
    Oct 20, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • CVSS changed · 8.8
    Oct 20, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • Source status changed · → Modified
    Oct 20, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • Record created in this database
    Oct 20, 2026 · Alertas do Telegram
  • 2019
  • CVE published
    Nov 15, 2019 · redhat

Source activity

Repeated readings are counted rather than listed.

  • 2× References added · Oct 20, 2026 – Oct 20, 2026
  • 1× Official description updated · Oct 20, 2026 – Oct 20, 2026

References

18 on the record

Elsewhere on this site

Artifex
every CVE for this vendor
Access control
same class
CWE-732
other pages naming this weakness

Related CVEs (same products)

  • CVE-2026-103226 Artifex Ghostscript Pdfwrite gdevpsfx.c type1_callsubr stack-based overflow 21d
  • CVE-2026-54230 Abrt: event handler scripts follow symlinks when writing output files, allowing arbitrary file overwrites Jun 13, 2026
  • CVE-2026-54231 Abrt: unsanitized systemd journal content written to dump directory files enables content injection Jun 13, 2026
  • CVE-2026-31431 Linux Kernel Incorrect Resource Transfer Between Spheres Vulnerability KEV Apr 22, 2026
  • CVE-2026-35093 Libinput: libinput: unauthorized code execution and information disclosure through lua bytecode plugins Apr 1, 2026
  • CVE-2026-35094 Libinput: libinput: information disclosure via dangling pointer in lua plugin handling Apr 1, 2026

Not in any source we poll

Listed rather than left blank: an empty field and an unmeasured one look identical on screen, and only one is a reason to look elsewhere.

  • No CISA SSVC assessment.
  • No confirmed IOCs, IP addresses, domains, file hashes, or malware artifacts supplied.
  • No organization-specific asset inventory, compensating-control status, or patch deployment evidence supplied.
  • No exploit packet captures, log samples, or incident case IDs supplied.

Answered from this record

Text assembled only from the fields above — no additional claims.

What should defenders know first?

CVE-2019-14869 is "A flaw was found in all versions of ghostscript 9.x before 9.28, where the `.charkeys` procedure,...", rated High. It affects Ghostscript (Artifex); versions are in the scope table. It is not in CISA KEV, which does not rule out exploitation. CVSS 8.8 describes technical severity. EPSS 4.50% estimates the probability of exploitation in 30 days; neither replaces your asset context. First verify whether exposed or business-critical assets run the affected versions, apply vendor fixes or mitigations, and preserve logs for review.

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