CVE-2026-84233
Rpm: command execution via macro expansion in `rpmuncompress -x` for crafted `.gem` filenames
What happened?
A flaw was found in rpm. A local attacker could supply a specially crafted `.gem` filename containing RPM macro syntax. When a user or automated workflow invokes `rpmuncompress -x` on this file, the macro expansion occurs during command construction. This allows the attacker to execute arbitrary commands with the privileges of the invoking account, leading to a compromise of confidentiality, integrity, and availability.
Affected software and versions
| Software | Version information | Fixed version |
|---|---|---|
| rpm-mainRed Hat | unaffected: 6.1.0-1.hum1 to < * | See vendor advisory |
| rpmRed Hat | Default status: affected | See vendor advisory |
| rpmRed Hat | Default status: unaffected | See vendor advisory |
| rpmRed Hat | Default status: unaffected | See vendor advisory |
| rpmRed Hat | Default status: unaffected | See vendor advisory |
| rpmRed Hat | Default status: unaffected | See vendor advisory |
Version information comes from the source record and can include unaffected products and exceptions. Distribution packages may contain backported fixes: an older upstream version alone does not prove a server is affected.
Is it being exploited?
This CVE was not listed in the CISA catalogue at our last retrieval. This does not establish that exploitation is absent.
How to respond
- Confirm the product, installed package version, and any configuration requirements in the vendor advisory.
- Follow the vendor’s remediation or workaround guidance in the references below. Structured fixed-version data is unavailable here; the publisher’s description may include a fix or workaround.
- Restart affected services if required, then verify the running version. Known exploitation may warrant investigation as well as patching.