CVE-2026-73055

What it is

Shescape before 2.1.15 (and 3.0.0 before 3.0.2) fails to properly escape tilde (~) characters in assignment contexts on Unix systems where the shell is explicitly configured to "sh" or true and /bin/sh points to BusyBox. Using the escape and escapeAll APIs with untrusted input in an assignment prefixed to a command, an attacker can inject a tilde payload to disclose the user's home directory location and, depending on usage, alter the location on which a command operates.

At a glance

Exploitability

Can be exploited over the network without logging in. Limited direct impact.

Exploit odds

0.4% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days (EPSS).

Fix

A patch, advisory or fixed version is referenced. Upgrade or apply it.

Timeline

1. 2026-08-15 22:16 UTC PublishedDisclosed publicly on CVE.org and NVD
2. 2026-08-31 15:17 UTC Last updatedMost recent change to the record

Details

Published

2026-08-15 22:16 UTC

Last modified

2026-08-31 15:17 UTC

Exploit probability

0.4% · EPSS, next 30 days

Weakness

CWE-116

Record status

Deferred

Attack profile CVSS 4.0 · 6.3

Attack vector

Network

Complexity

Low

Attack requirements

Present

Privileges needed

None

User interaction

None

Confidentiality

Low

Integrity

Low

Availability

None