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VulnerabilityPublished Updated

CVE-2024-38448: GNU Global · Code Injection

Source CVE Database V5

0

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 9.1 Critical.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 12:54 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score
9.1Critical
How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.
EPSS
0.5% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 44% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Affects
GNU Global through 6.6.12
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N

Exploitation evidence

  1. Disclosed: evidence found.

    CVE published 16 Jun 2024

  2. Detectable: no evidence on record.

    No public nuclei template indexed

  3. Weaponised: no evidence on record.

    No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB

  4. Exploited in the wild: no evidence on record.

    Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation

  5. Observed by OffSeq Mirage: no evidence on record.

    No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 26 Oct 2026.

What to do

AI-suggested

To mitigate CVE-2024-38448, organizations should immediately audit their use of GNU Global and identify any instances where the dbpath (-d) parameter can be influenced by untrusted users or inputs. Restrict usage of the dbpath option to trusted, sanitized inputs only, avoiding any shell metacharacters or unescaped user data. Employ input validation and sanitization techniques to ensure that dbpath values do not contain characters that could be interpreted by the shell. Where possible, run GNU Global in environments with least privilege, limiting the impact of potential exploitation. Monitor for unusual process executions or shell commands originating from GNU Global instances. Until an official patch is released, consider isolating GNU Global usage within containerized or sandboxed environments to contain potential compromise. Stay updated with vendor advisories and apply patches promptly once available. Additionally, implement network segmentation and access controls to limit exposure of systems running GNU Global to untrusted networks.

Description

htags in GNU Global through 6.6.12 allows code execution in situations where dbpath (aka -d) is untrusted, because shell metacharacters may be used.

References

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