How severe is CVE-2026-23988?

CVE-2026-23988 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 7.3, rated high severity. It is exploitable over local access with low attack complexity, requires low privileges and user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.

Is CVE-2026-23988 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 0% (9th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2026-23988?

CVE-2026-23988 affects Akeo Rufus. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.

How do I fix CVE-2026-23988?

Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its high severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.

Does CVE-2026-23988 have an EU (EUVD) identifier?

Yes. CVE-2026-23988 is tracked in the ENISA EU Vulnerability Database (EUVD) as EUVD-2026-4202.

When was CVE-2026-23988 published?

CVE-2026-23988 was published on 2026-01-22 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2026-23988

CVE-2026-23988 is a high-severity vulnerability in Akeo Rufus with a CVSS 3.x base score of 7.3. It is not currently listed as actively exploited by CISA, and its EPSS exploit-prediction score is low. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-367.

Key facts

Severity: High (CVSS 3.x base score 7.3)
EPSS exploit prediction: 0% (9th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
EU (EUVD) id: EUVD-2026-4202
Weakness: CWE-367
Affected product: Akeo Rufus
Published: 2026-01-22
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

Rufus is a utility that helps format and create bootable USB flash drives. Versions 4.11 and below contain a race condition (TOCTOU) in src/net.c during the creation, validation, and execution of the Fido PowerShell script. Since Rufus runs with elevated privileges (Administrator) but writes the script to the %TEMP% directory (writeable by standard users) without locking the file, a local attacker can replace the legitimate script with a malicious one between the file write operation and the execution step. This allows arbitrary code execution with Administrator privileges. This issue has been fixed in version 4.12_BETA.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2026-23988?: Rufus is a utility that helps format and create bootable USB flash drives. Versions 4.11 and below contain a race condition (TOCTOU) in src/net.c during the creation, validation, and execution of the Fido PowerShell script. Since Rufus runs with elevated privileges (Administrator) but writes the script to the %TEMP% directory (writeable by standard users) without locking the file, a local attacker can replace the legitimate script with a malicious one between the file write operation and the execution step. This allows arbitrary code execution with Administrator privileges. This issue has been fixed in version 4.12_BETA.
How severe is CVE-2026-23988?: CVE-2026-23988 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 7.3, rated high severity. It is exploitable over local access with low attack complexity, requires low privileges and user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.
Is CVE-2026-23988 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 0% (9th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2026-23988?: CVE-2026-23988 affects Akeo Rufus. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.
How do I fix CVE-2026-23988?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its high severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.
Does CVE-2026-23988 have an EU (EUVD) identifier?: Yes. CVE-2026-23988 is tracked in the ENISA EU Vulnerability Database (EUVD) as EUVD-2026-4202.
When was CVE-2026-23988 published?: CVE-2026-23988 was published on 2026-01-22 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (1)

cpe:2.3:a:akeo:rufus:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

More vulnerabilities in Akeo Rufus

CVE-2019-1010101 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): Akeo Consulting Rufus 3.0 and earlier is affected by: Insecure Permissions. The impact is: arbitrary code execution…
CVE-2019-1010100 — High (CVSS 7.8): Akeo Consulting Rufus 3.0 and earlier is affected by: DLL search order hijacking. The impact is: Arbitrary code…
CVE-2017-13083 — Medium (CVSS 5.3): Akeo Consulting Rufus prior to version 2.17.1187 does not adequately validate the integrity of updates downloaded over…

All CVEs affecting Akeo Rufus →

Other CWE-367 (Time-of-check Time-of-use (TOCTOU) Race Condition) vulnerabilities

CVE-2026-25641 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): SandboxJS is a JavaScript sandboxing library. Prior to 0.8.29, there is a sandbox escape vulnerability due to a…
CVE-2025-64180 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Manager-io/Manager is accounting software. In Manager Desktop and Server versions 25.11.1.3085 and below, a critical…
CVE-2025-34027 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): The Versa Concerto SD-WAN orchestration platform is vulnerable to an authentication bypass in the Traefik reverse proxy…
CVE-2026-25052 — Critical (CVSS 9.9): n8n is an open source workflow automation platform. Prior to versions 1.123.18 and 2.5.0, a vulnerability in the file…
CVE-2025-13032 — Critical (CVSS 9.9): Double fetch in sandbox kernel driver in Avast/AVG Antivirus <25.3 on windows allows local attacker to escalate…
CVE-2026-53838 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): OpenClaw before 2026.5.27 contains a state mutation vulnerability in node pairing reconnection that allows paired nodes…

Browse all CWE-367 (Time-of-check Time-of-use (TOCTOU) Race Condition) vulnerabilities →