CVE-2026-4631: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection') in Red Hat Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10
A critical vulnerability (CVE-2026-4631) exists in the Cockpit web-based server administration tool used in Red Hat Enterprise Linux. The flaw involves unauthenticated remote code execution due to SSH command-line argument injection. This allows an attacker to execute arbitrary commands remotely without authentication. Red Hat has released patches addressing this issue by improving hostname handling on the command line. The vulnerability affects multiple Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9.6 and 10.0 Extended Update Support and standard releases across various architectures. No known exploits are reported in the wild at this time.
AI Analysis
Technical Summary
Cockpit, a web-based interface for administering GNU/Linux servers, contains an OS command injection vulnerability (CWE-78) identified as CVE-2026-4631. This vulnerability arises from improper neutralization of special elements in SSH command-line arguments, enabling unauthenticated remote code execution. The issue affects Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9.6 and 10.0 EUS variants across multiple architectures (x86_64, s390x, ppc64le, aarch64). Red Hat has issued security advisories RHSA-2026:7381 and RHSA-2026:7382 providing updated cockpit packages that explicitly handle hostnames on the CLI to mitigate this vulnerability.
Potential Impact
Successful exploitation of this vulnerability allows unauthenticated remote attackers to execute arbitrary OS commands on affected systems via the Cockpit interface, potentially leading to full system compromise. Given the critical severity rating by Red Hat and the nature of the vulnerability (remote code execution), the impact is high for affected environments.
Mitigation Recommendations
Red Hat has released official security updates addressing this vulnerability. Users should apply the cockpit package updates provided in advisories RHSA-2026:7381 and RHSA-2026:7382 for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10.0 and 9.6 EUS respectively. Before applying these updates, ensure all previously released errata relevant to your system are applied. Follow Red Hat's official guidance at https://access.redhat.com/articles/11258 for update procedures. No additional mitigations are indicated by the vendor advisory.
CVE-2026-4631: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection') in Red Hat Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10
Description
A critical vulnerability (CVE-2026-4631) exists in the Cockpit web-based server administration tool used in Red Hat Enterprise Linux. The flaw involves unauthenticated remote code execution due to SSH command-line argument injection. This allows an attacker to execute arbitrary commands remotely without authentication. Red Hat has released patches addressing this issue by improving hostname handling on the command line. The vulnerability affects multiple Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9.6 and 10.0 Extended Update Support and standard releases across various architectures. No known exploits are reported in the wild at this time.
Affected software
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Weaknesses
AI-Powered Analysis
Machine-generated threat intelligence
Technical Analysis
Cockpit, a web-based interface for administering GNU/Linux servers, contains an OS command injection vulnerability (CWE-78) identified as CVE-2026-4631. This vulnerability arises from improper neutralization of special elements in SSH command-line arguments, enabling unauthenticated remote code execution. The issue affects Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9.6 and 10.0 EUS variants across multiple architectures (x86_64, s390x, ppc64le, aarch64). Red Hat has issued security advisories RHSA-2026:7381 and RHSA-2026:7382 providing updated cockpit packages that explicitly handle hostnames on the CLI to mitigate this vulnerability.
Potential Impact
Successful exploitation of this vulnerability allows unauthenticated remote attackers to execute arbitrary OS commands on affected systems via the Cockpit interface, potentially leading to full system compromise. Given the critical severity rating by Red Hat and the nature of the vulnerability (remote code execution), the impact is high for affected environments.
Mitigation Recommendations
Red Hat has released official security updates addressing this vulnerability. Users should apply the cockpit package updates provided in advisories RHSA-2026:7381 and RHSA-2026:7382 for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10.0 and 9.6 EUS respectively. Before applying these updates, ensure all previously released errata relevant to your system are applied. Follow Red Hat's official guidance at https://access.redhat.com/articles/11258 for update procedures. No additional mitigations are indicated by the vendor advisory.
Technical Details
- Gcve Source
- db.gcve.eu
- Csaf Category
- csaf_security_advisory
- Csaf Version
- 2.0
- Publisher
- Red Hat Product Security
- Advisory Id
- RHSA-2026:7384
- Cve Count
- 1
- State
- PUBLISHED
Threat ID: 6a3da1be4853345fc181bd02
Added to database: 06/25/2026, 21:46:38 UTC
Last enriched: 08/04/2026, 17:21:49 UTC
Last updated: 09/14/2026, 10:40:34 UTC
Views: 164
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