Backdoor users on Linux with uid=0
infonews
security
Source: Embrace The RedAugust 30, 2021
Summary
On Linux systems, users with uid=0 (user identifier zero) have root privileges, which bypass all security checks. An attacker can create a new account or modify an existing one to have uid=0 by editing the /etc/passwd file or using commands like 'usermod -u 0', giving them complete system control.
Classification
Attack SophisticationTrivial
Original source: https://embracethered.com/blog/posts/2021/linux-user-uid-zero-backdoor/
First tracked: February 12, 2026 at 02:20 PM
Classified by LLM (prompt v3) · confidence: 95%