privilege escalation
also: privesc, elevation of privilege, permission escalation
The act of gaining higher-level permissions or access rights on a system than originally granted, typically from a regular user to root/administrator level.
Privilege escalation is a security technique or vulnerability where a user obtains elevated permissions beyond their intended access level. This can happen through legitimate means (like using sudo) or through exploiting system weaknesses.
There are two main types: vertical escalation, where a regular user gains root/admin privileges, and horizontal escalation, where a user gains access to another user's files or resources at the same privilege level.
Example: A user without root access needs to install software. Instead of logging in as root, they use sudo apt install package-name, which temporarily escalates their privileges for that single command. Conversely, an attacker might exploit a vulnerable setuid binary to gain root access without authorization.