snappy: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command
CVE-2026-46643 is a high-severity improper neutralization of special elements used in an OS command vulnerability in snappy from KnpLabs, with a CVSS 4.0 base score of 7.5 out of 10. It can be exploited with local access to the system by an unauthenticated attacker, without any action from a user. Affected snappy versions: < 1.7.1. The record does not name a fixed version, so check the vendor advisory. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.2% chance of exploitation within 30 days, which is low compared with other CVEs.
High severity with no evidence of exploitation so far.
What to do
- Check which version of snappy 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
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.
- Attack requirements
- PresentThe target must be in a specific state or configuration for the attack to work.
- Privileges required
- NoneNo account or login is needed.
- User interaction
- NoneNo action by a victim is required.
- Confidentiality (vulnerable system)
- HighSerious loss of confidentiality on the vulnerable system.
- Integrity (vulnerable system)
- HighSerious loss of integrity on the vulnerable system.
- Availability (vulnerable system)
- HighSerious loss of availability on the vulnerable system.
- Confidentiality (other systems)
- NoneNo loss of confidentiality on systems beyond the vulnerable one.
- Integrity (other systems)
- NoneNo loss of integrity on systems beyond the vulnerable one.
- Availability (other systems)
- NoneNo loss of availability on systems beyond the vulnerable one.
Vector: CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:P/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X. Scored by CNA (github.com).
Official description
Snappy is a PHP library allowing thumbnail, snapshot or PDF generation from a url or a html page. Prior to version 1.7.1, on POSIX, escapeshellarg(‘/usr/bin/wkhtmltopdf’) returns the literal string ‘/usr/bin/wkhtmltopdf’ with the single-quote characters included. is_executable() then looks for a file whose actual name contains those quote characters, which essentially never exists. The safe branch is dead code and $command always falls through to the raw, unescaped value. The rest of the arguments (options, input, output) are escaped correctly, so injection has to land in the binary string itself. That happens whenever the binary path is sourced from configuration that is user-influenced, derived from environment variables that ultimately come from request data, or concatenated with any user-controlled fragment. This issue has been patched in version 1.7.1.
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
Patches and release notes
Other vulnerabilities in snappy
- 9.8 Critical severity
- 9.8 Critical severity
Recent Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command vulnerabilities
- 7.7 High severity
- 7.2 High severity
- 7.5 High severity
- 8.5 High severity
- 7.3 High severity
- 8.8 High severity
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