Powerlevel10k before 1.20.19 contains a symlink following vulnerability in _p9k_dump_instant_prompt that allows local
Source GCVE Database
Not known to be exploited · CVSS 4.1 Medium : upgrade to 1.20.19 when convenient.
Data as of 4 Nov 2026, 22:39 UTC
Thin evidence
One scorer or none| CNA (VulnCheck) | CVSS 4.0 | 4.1 |
|---|---|---|
| CNA (VulnCheck) | CVSS 3.1 | 4.4 |
- Patch
- Available – fixed in 1.20.19
CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:P/PR:L/UI:P/VC:N/VI:H/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:NExploitation evidence
Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 4 Nov 2026
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponized: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by 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 4 Nov 2026.
What to do
Upgrade powerlevel10k and romkatv/powerlevel10k to 1.20.19.
Affected software
| Product | Affected | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
| romkatvpowerlevel10k | Affected
| Fixed in
|
GitHubromkatv/powerlevel10kpkg:github/romkatv/powerlevel10kOther threats | Affected
| Fixed in
|
Check your own hosts for these packages with threat-finder (opens in a new tab), our free open-source scanner.
AI-suggested
Users should upgrade Powerlevel10k to version 1.20.19 or later where this vulnerability is fixed. Until patched, avoid running untrusted code locally and restrict access to the TMPDIR directory to trusted users only.
Description
Powerlevel10k versions prior to 1.20.19 have a symlink following vulnerability in the _p9k_dump_instant_prompt function. This flaw allows local attackers to overwrite files writable by the victim by creating symlinks in a predictable temporary file path. The attack requires guessing the victim's shell process ID to pre-plant symlinks named p10k-instant-prompt-output-<user>-<pid> in the TMPDIR directory, causing the shell startup to truncate and overwrite the targeted files.
References
- nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-122136 (opens in a new tab)
- github.com/romkatv/powerlevel10k/issues/2972 (opens in a new tab)
- github.com/romkatv/powerlevel10k/commit/7ddd1b2715c3844275214347a3572ac1fdd6dc39 (opens in a new tab)
- github.com/romkatv/powerlevel10k (opens in a new tab)
- github.com/romkatv/powerlevel10k/blob/v1.20.0/internal/p10k.zsh (opens in a new tab)
- vulncheck.com/advisories/powerlevel10k-before-1.20.19-symlink-following-via-instant-prompt-temporary-file (opens in a new tab)