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Milan Jain, a renowned cybersecurity expert, recently uncovered critical vulnerabilities—Privilege Escalation and Information Disclosure—earning a €597 bounty. These flaws could have granted attackers full admin access and exposed sensitive data. Below, we break down these vulnerabilities, along with practical commands, tools, and mitigation techniques.
You Should Know: Privilege Escalation & Information Disclosure Exploits
1. Privilege Escalation
Privilege escalation occurs when an attacker gains higher-level permissions than intended. Common techniques include:
Linux Privilege Escalation Commands
- Check current user privileges:
whoami && id
- List sudo permissions:
sudo -l
- Find SUID binaries (misconfigured):
find / -perm -4000 -type f 2>/dev/null
- Exploit kernel vulnerabilities (check with):
uname -a
Windows Privilege Escalation
- List user privileges:
whoami /priv
- Check installed patches (missing updates = vulnerable):
wmic qfe list
- Exploit weak service permissions:
accesschk.exe -uwcqv "Authenticated Users"<br />
2. Information Disclosure
This flaw leaks sensitive data (e.g., API keys, credentials, internal IPs).
Detection & Exploitation
- Grep for secrets in web responses:
curl -s http://example.com | grep -E "api_key|password|token"
- Check misconfigured S3 buckets:
aws s3 ls s3://bucket-name --no-sign-request
- Exposed .git directories:
wget --mirror --include-directories=/.git http://example.com/.git/
Prevention
- Disable directory listing in Apache/Nginx.
- Sanitize error messages.
- Use .env for secrets (never hardcode).
What Undercode Say
Privilege escalation and information disclosure remain top threats in 2024. Key takeaways:
– Always validate user permissions.
– Audit logs for unusual access patterns.
– Automate scans with tools like LinPEAS (Linux) and WinPEAS (Windows).
– HackerOne and Bugcrowd offer bounties for such flaws—start hunting!
Prediction
As cloud adoption grows, misconfigured IAM roles and serverless function leaks will dominate bug bounty reports in 2025.
Expected Output:
A detailed analysis of privilege escalation and data exposure vulnerabilities, with actionable commands for both offensive and defensive security.
(URLs for further reading: OWASP Privilege Escalation, HackerOne Bug Bounty Tips)
IT/Security Reporter URL:
Reported By: Milan Jain – Hackers Feeds
Extra Hub: Undercode MoN
Basic Verification: Pass ✅
