CVE-2026-53803

rsync < 3.5.0 Symlink Following Arbitrary File Overwrite

State
Published
Severity
8.5 High
Published
Aug 13, 2026
Updated
Aug 14, 2026
Reserved
Jun 10, 2026

Read the record on cve.org

Description

rsync before 3.5.0 contains a symlink following vulnerability that allows local attackers to overwrite arbitrary files by placing a symlink at a predictable output path such as --log-file, --write-batch, or daemon-mode log and statistics paths. Attackers can exploit rsync's failure to reject symlinks during ancillary file writes to redirect output to arbitrary filesystem locations, achieving local privilege escalation on installations where rsync runs with elevated privileges such as setuid or privileged daemon configurations.

Scores

CVSSScoreVectorSource
4.08.5 HighCVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:NVulnCheck
3.17.8 HighCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:HVulnCheck

Weaknesses

  • CWE-59 Improper Link Resolution Before File Access ('Link Following')

Affected Products

ProductVersions
rsyncRsyncProject
  • 3.4.4 and earlierAffected
  • 3.5.0Not affected

References

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