CVE-2026-35338

Description

A vulnerability in the chmod utility of uutils coreutils allows users to bypass the --preserve-root safety mechanism. The implementation only validates if the target path is literally / and does not canonicalize the path. An attacker or accidental user can use path variants such as /../ or symbolic links to execute destructive recursive operations (e.g., chmod -R 000) on the entire root filesystem, leading to system-wide permission loss and potential complete system breakdown.

CVSS v3.1 Score

7.3

HIGH

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

EPSS — Exploit Prediction

0.0001

Probability of exploitation

0.01%

Percentile rank

EPSS estimates the probability that this vulnerability will be exploited in the wild within the next 30 days. A higher score means more likely to be exploited.

Weakness Type (CWE)

CWE-22 Path Traversal

Affected Products

Vendor	Product	Versions
uutils	coreutils	< 0.6.0

References

Advisories & Patches

https://github.com/uutils/coreutils/pull/10033

Other References

https://github.com/uutils/coreutils/releases/tag/0.6.0

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-35338? +

A vulnerability in the chmod utility of uutils coreutils allows users to bypass the --preserve-root safety mechanism. The implementation only validates if the target path is literally / and does not canonicalize the path. An attacker or accidental user can use path variants such as /../ or symbolic links to execute destructive recursive operations (e.g., chmod -R 000) on the entire root filesystem, leading to system-wide permission loss and potential complete system breakdown. It has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.3 (HIGH).

How severe is CVE-2026-35338? +

CVE-2026-35338 has a CVSS v3.1 score of 7.3 out of 10, rated HIGH. This is a high-severity vulnerability that should be prioritized for patching. The EPSS score is 0.0001, placing it in the 0th percentile for exploitation probability.

What products are affected by CVE-2026-35338? +

CVE-2026-35338 affects products from uutils, specifically: coreutils. Check the affected products table above for specific version ranges.

How do I check if I'm vulnerable to CVE-2026-35338? +

You can use Secably's free Website Scanner to check your website for known vulnerabilities. For infrastructure scanning, use the Port Scanner to identify exposed services that may be affected. Check the vendor advisories linked above for specific patch and version information.

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