How severe is CVE-2026-48162?

CVE-2026-48162 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 9.1, rated critical severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires high privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.

Is CVE-2026-48162 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 1% (50th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2026-48162?

CVE-2026-48162 primarily affects Wazuh. In total, 3 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.

How do I fix CVE-2026-48162?

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

When was CVE-2026-48162 published?

CVE-2026-48162 was published on 2026-08-19 and last updated on 2026-09-15.

CVE-2026-48162

CVE-2026-48162 is a critical-severity vulnerability in Wazuh with a CVSS 3.x base score of 9.1. 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-73.

Key facts

Severity: Critical (CVSS 3.x base score 9.1)
EPSS exploit prediction: 1% (50th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-73
Affected product: Wazuh
Published: 2026-08-19
Last modified: 2026-09-15

Description

Wazuh is a free and open source platform used for threat prevention, detection, and response. From 4.0.0 until 4.14.6 and 5.0.0-beta3, DistributedAPI.send_tmp_file() in framework/wazuh/core/cluster/dapi/dapi.py joins an attacker-controlled tmp_file value to WAZUH_PATH without canonicalization or confinement. A cluster peer holding the shared Fernet key can use traversal or an absolute path to make the master return any readable file over the cluster channel. Reading /var/ossec/api/configuration/security/private_key.pem allows the peer to forge administrator REST API tokens offline and then exercise administrative privileges without creating an account. This issue is fixed in versions 4.14.6 and 5.0.0-beta3.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2026-48162?: Wazuh is a free and open source platform used for threat prevention, detection, and response. From 4.0.0 until 4.14.6 and 5.0.0-beta3, DistributedAPI.send_tmp_file() in framework/wazuh/core/cluster/dapi/dapi.py joins an attacker-controlled tmp_file value to WAZUH_PATH without canonicalization or confinement. A cluster peer holding the shared Fernet key can use traversal or an absolute path to make the master return any readable file over the cluster channel. Reading /var/ossec/api/configuration/security/private_key.pem allows the peer to forge administrator REST API tokens offline and then exercise administrative privileges without creating an account. This issue is fixed in versions 4.14.6 and 5.0.0-beta3.
How severe is CVE-2026-48162?: CVE-2026-48162 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 9.1, rated critical severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires high privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.
Is CVE-2026-48162 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 1% (50th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2026-48162?: CVE-2026-48162 primarily affects Wazuh. In total, 3 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.
How do I fix CVE-2026-48162?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its critical severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.
When was CVE-2026-48162 published?: CVE-2026-48162 was published on 2026-08-19 and last updated on 2026-09-15.

References

Affected products (3)

cpe:2.3:a:wazuh:wazuh:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:wazuh:wazuh:5.0.0:beta1:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:wazuh:wazuh:5.0.0:beta2:*:*:*:*:*:*

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