emissary: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command
CVE-2026-35582 is a high-severity improper neutralization of special elements used in an OS command vulnerability in emissary from NationalSecurityAgency, with a CVSS 3.1 base score of 8.8 out of 10. It can be exploited with local access to the system by an attacker with a low-privileged account, without any action from a user. Affected emissary versions: < 8.43.0. The record does not name a fixed version, so check the vendor advisory. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.86% chance of exploitation within 30 days, higher than 59% of scored CVEs.
High severity with no evidence of exploitation so far.
What to do
- Check which version of emissary you run against the affected versions below, and install the vendor's latest release.
- Read the advisory on github.com for workarounds and exact fixed builds.
Affected products and versions
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| NationalSecurityAgency | emissary | < 8.43.0 | Not stated |
Version data comes from the organisation that assigned the CVE. Confirm against the vendor advisory before deciding you are unaffected.
How the severity score breaks down
- Attack vector
- LocalThe attacker needs local access or must trick a user into running something.
- Attack complexity
- LowNo special conditions are needed; the attack works reliably.
- Privileges required
- LowA basic user account is enough.
- User interaction
- NoneNo action by a victim is required.
- Scope
- ChangedThe attack can reach beyond the vulnerable component into other systems.
- Confidentiality
- HighAll data handled by the component can be read.
- Integrity
- HighData or code can be modified at will.
- Availability
- HighThe component can be taken down completely.
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H. Scored by CNA (github.com).
Official description
Emissary is a P2P based data-driven workflow engine. In versions 8.42.0 and below, Executrix.getCommand() is vulnerable to OS command injection because it interpolates temporary file paths into a /bin/sh -c shell command string without any escaping or input validation. The IN_FILE_ENDING and OUT_FILE_ENDING configuration keys flow directly into these paths, allowing a place author who can write or modify a .cfg file to inject arbitrary shell metacharacters that execute OS commands in the JVM process's security context. The framework already sanitizes placeName via an allowlist before embedding it in the same shell string, but applies no equivalent sanitization to file ending values. No runtime privileges beyond place configuration authorship, and no API or network access, are required to exploit this vulnerability. This is a framework-level defect with no safe mitigation available to downstream implementors, as Executrix provides neither escaping nor documented preconditions against metacharacters in file ending inputs. This issue has been fixed in version 8.43.0.
Source: the CVE record as published by its numbering authority, via NVD and CVE.org.
The underlying weakness: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command
The product constructs all or part of an OS command using externally-influenced input from an upstream component, but it does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes special elements that could modify the intended OS command before it is sent to a downstream component.
How developers prevent this class of flaw
- If at all possible, use library calls rather than external processes to recreate the desired functionality.
- For any data that will be used to generate a command to be executed, keep as much of that data out of external control as possible. For example, in web applications, this may require storing the data locally in the session's state instead of sending it out to the client in a hidden form field.
- For any security checks that are performed on the client side, ensure that these checks are duplicated on the server side, in order to avoid CWE-602. Attackers can bypass the client-side checks by modifying values after the checks have been performed, or by changing the client to remove the client-side checks entirely. Then, these modified values would be submitted to the server.
More Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command vulnerabilities (CWE-78)
Timeline
- CVE record published.
- CISA published its SSVC assessment (exploitation: poc, automatable: no, technical impact: total).
- Record last changed materially (score, affected products, status or references).
References
Advisories
Patches and release notes
Other vulnerabilities in emissary
- 7.2 High severity
- 9.1 Critical severity
- 7.5 High severity
Recent Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command vulnerabilities
- 7.8 High severity
- 9.1 Critical severity
- 8.6 High severity
- 9.8 Critical severity
- 7.4 High severity
- 8.8 High severity
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