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CVE-2026-12505

HIGHCVSS 7.8/10EPSS 0.16%

Last modified

CVE-2026-12505 is a high-severity vulnerability rated 7.8/10 on the CVSS scale. A flaw was found in the cifs-utils package where the cifs.upcall helper fails to securely drop its root privileges before looking up user information inside a user-controlled environment. A local, low privileged attacker can exploit this by using a crafted request_key payload to trick the root-owned helper into entering a custom environment (namespace) containing a malicious NSS module. EPSS estimates a 0.16% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days.

Description

A flaw was found in the cifs-utils package where the cifs.upcall helper fails to securely drop its root privileges before looking up user information inside a user-controlled environment. A local, low privileged attacker can exploit this by using a crafted request_key payload to trick the root-owned helper into entering a custom environment (namespace) containing a malicious NSS module. This forces the system to load the attacker's controlled NSS Module and configuration, allowing them to execute arbitrary commands as the root user, elevating their privileges and fully compromising the system.

Metrics

CVSS 3.1
7.8/10

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

EPSS Probability
0.16%

5.3th percentile

Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days. Learn more

Weakness Enumeration

Affected Software

Source: CNA advisory (CVE.org). NVD analysis pending.

VendorProductVersions
Red HatRed Hat Enterprise Linux 10All versions
Red HatRed Hat Enterprise Linux 8All versions
Red HatRed Hat Enterprise Linux 9All versions
Red HatRed Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4.22All versions
Red HatRed Hat Enterprise Linux 6All versions
Red HatRed Hat Enterprise Linux 7All versions

References

Timeline

Published
Last Modified
Status
Awaiting Analysis

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-12505?
A flaw was found in the cifs-utils package where the cifs.upcall helper fails to securely drop its root privileges before looking up user information inside a user-controlled environment. A local, low privileged attacker can exploit this by using a crafted request_key payload to trick the root-owned helper into entering a custom environment (namespace) containing a malicious NSS module. This forces the system to load the attacker's controlled NSS Module and configuration, allowing them to execute arbitrary commands as the root user, elevating their privileges and fully compromising the system.
How severe is CVE-2026-12505?
CVE-2026-12505 has a CVSS score of 7.8/10 (HIGH severity). The EPSS model estimates a 0.16% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
How do I fix CVE-2026-12505?
Check the vendor references and advisories linked above for patched versions and mitigation guidance. You can also run a Strix scan to test if your systems are affected.

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Source: NVD / NIST