CVE-2026-103431: Improper Neutralization of Escape, Meta, or Control Sequences
colmux in collectl before 4.3.20.2 does not sanitize ANSI/VT100 terminal escape sequences in data received from remote collectl instances before displaying it, allowing a local user on a monitored host to inject escape sequences into the terminal of an operator running colmux, via a crafted process name (argv[0]).
AI Analysis
Technical Summary
The vulnerability CVE-2026-103431 affects colmux in collectl versions prior to 4.3.20.3. It arises from improper neutralization of ANSI/VT100 terminal escape sequences in data received from remote collectl instances. A local user on a monitored host can exploit this by setting a crafted process name (argv[0]) containing escape sequences, which colmux then displays without sanitization, potentially leading to terminal manipulation for the operator running colmux.
Potential Impact
Successful exploitation can lead to high confidentiality and integrity impact as the attacker can inject terminal escape sequences that may manipulate the operator's terminal display or behavior. The vulnerability does not affect availability. The CVSS 3.1 score is 7.7 (high), reflecting network attack vector with high impact but requiring low privileges and user interaction.
Mitigation Recommendations
A fix is available in collectl version 4.3.20.3. Users should upgrade to version 4.3.20.3 or later to remediate this vulnerability. No other mitigation steps are indicated by the vendor advisory.
CVE-2026-103431: Improper Neutralization of Escape, Meta, or Control Sequences
Description
colmux in collectl before 4.3.20.2 does not sanitize ANSI/VT100 terminal escape sequences in data received from remote collectl instances before displaying it, allowing a local user on a monitored host to inject escape sequences into the terminal of an operator running colmux, via a crafted process name (argv[0]).
CVSS v3.1
Score 7.7high
Affected software
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AI-Powered Analysis
Machine-generated threat intelligence
Technical Analysis
The vulnerability CVE-2026-103431 affects colmux in collectl versions prior to 4.3.20.3. It arises from improper neutralization of ANSI/VT100 terminal escape sequences in data received from remote collectl instances. A local user on a monitored host can exploit this by setting a crafted process name (argv[0]) containing escape sequences, which colmux then displays without sanitization, potentially leading to terminal manipulation for the operator running colmux.
Potential Impact
Successful exploitation can lead to high confidentiality and integrity impact as the attacker can inject terminal escape sequences that may manipulate the operator's terminal display or behavior. The vulnerability does not affect availability. The CVSS 3.1 score is 7.7 (high), reflecting network attack vector with high impact but requiring low privileges and user interaction.
Mitigation Recommendations
A fix is available in collectl version 4.3.20.3. Users should upgrade to version 4.3.20.3 or later to remediate this vulnerability. No other mitigation steps are indicated by the vendor advisory.
Technical Details
- Data Version
- 5.2
- Assigner Short Name
- fedora
- Date Reserved
- 2026-09-30T15:19:13.980Z
- Cvss Version
- 3.1
- State
- PUBLISHED
- Vendor Advisory Urls
- [{"url":"https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-103431","vendor":"Red Hat"}]
Threat ID: 6abe749ba43b0b3b89bd1d4c
Added to database: 10/01/2026, 14:56:27 UTC
Last enriched: 10/01/2026, 15:26:21 UTC
Last updated: 10/01/2026, 19:41:31 UTC
Views: 4
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