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CVE-2026-23942

SFTP root escape via component-agnostic prefix check in ssh_sftpd

Published: Mar 13, 2026Updated: May 21, 2026 Sources: CVE List NVD BDUCWE-22
5.4MEDIUM
NVD MITRE
EPSS Score
0.4%
Top 71.9%
CISA KEV
Not in KEV
Exploits
No Known Exploits
Remediation
Patch Available
Self-Check
OpenVAS

Description

Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') vulnerability in Erlang OTP (ssh_sftpd module) allows Path Traversal. This vulnerability is associated with program files lib/ssh/src/ssh_sftpd.erl and program routines ssh_sftpd:is_within_root/2. The SFTP server uses string prefix matching via lists:prefix/2 rather than proper path component validation when checking if a path is within the configured root directory. This allows authenticated users to access sibling directories that share a common name prefix with the configured root directory. For example, if root is set to /home/user1, paths like /home/user10 or /home/user1_backup would incorrectly be considered within the root. This issue affects OTP from OTP 17.0 until OTP 28.4.1, OTP 27.3.4.9 and OTP 26.2.5.18, corresponding to ssh from 3.0.1 until 5.5.1, 5.2.11.6 and 5.1.4.14.

No summary for this CVE yet.

CVSS Vector Breakdown

AV:NAC:LPR:LUI:NS:UC:LI:LA:N
Exploitability
AV:NAttack Vector
Network
AC:LAttack Complexity
Low
PR:LPrivileges Required
Low
UI:NUser Interaction
None
Scope
S:UScope
Unchanged
Impact
C:LConfidentiality
Low
I:LIntegrity
Low
A:NAvailability
None
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Weaknesses

CWE-22

Affected Products

Erlang
oss-projectaka erlang/otp, erlang/ssh, otp
OTPLibraryLibrary
OSS Libraries / generic-library
erlang\/otpLibraryLibrary
OSS Libraries / generic-library
erlang\/sshLibraryLibrary
OSS Libraries / generic-library
Сообщество свободного программного обеспечения
oss-projectaka fsf
Debian GNU/LinuxOn-premOS
Operating Systems / linux-distro
ООО «Ред Софт»
commercial·RUaka red soft
РЕД ОСOn-premOS
Operating Systems / linux-distro
Ericsson-LG Enterprise Co., Ltd.
commercialaka ericsson lg enterprise co., ltd.
ErlangOn-prem
Communications / voip-telephony

Exploitability

Official Patch Available
Workaround Available
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Attack Graph

Products CVE Techniques Tactics

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MITRE ATT&CK

2 techniques
Collection
Discovery
View detailed technique mapping

References

https://github.com/erlang/otp/security/advisories/GHSA-4749-w85x-hw9h
github.com
https://cna.erlef.org/cves/CVE-2026-23942.html
cna.erlef.org
https://osv.dev/vulnerability/EEF-CVE-2026-23942
osv.dev
and 14 more references View all →
News mentions
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