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CVE-2026-49237

Canonical Multipass privilege escalation

7.8 HIGHPublic exploitEPSS 0.16%
  1. Published28 May 2026

Description

An issue was discovered in Canonical Multipass for macOS before version 1.16.3 due to an incomplete fix for CVE-2025-5199. While the patch in version 1.16.0 updated the ownership of the multipassd daemon binary to root:wheel, five co-located binaries (multipass, qemu-img, qemu-system-aarch64, qemu-system-x86_64, and sshfs_server) in /Library/Application Support/com.canonical.multipass/bin/ retain ownership by the installing user and remain writable. Because the root LaunchDaemon (com.canonical.multipassd.plist) configures a PATH environment variable that prioritizes this user-writable directory and invokes these auxiliary binaries by their bare names, a local attacker can replace an auxiliary binary (such as qemu-img) with a malicious wrapper. When the root daemon subsequently triggers the binary during routine execution (e.g., via multipass launch), the malicious code executes with root privileges, leading to local privilege escalation.

CVSS 3.1 breakdown

Attack vectorLocal
Attack complexityLow
Privileges requiredLow
User interactionNone
ScopeUnchanged
ConfidentialityHigh
IntegrityHigh
AvailabilityHigh
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Affected products

Canonical Multipass< 1.16.3

Remediation

Fixed in
Canonical Multipass≥ 1.16.3

References

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Frequently asked

Is CVE-2026-49237 being actively exploited?

CVE-2026-49237 is not in the CISA KEV catalog. A public exploit reference exists, so treat it as exploitable. Its EPSS exploit probability is 0.16%.

How severe is CVE-2026-49237?

CVE-2026-49237 has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.8, rated high. EPSS estimates a 0.16% probability of exploitation.

Which products are affected by CVE-2026-49237?

Affected products include Canonical Multipass.

How do I fix CVE-2026-49237?

Upgrade affected software to a fixed version, for example Canonical Multipass 1.16.3 or later, then confirm no affected versions remain in your inventory.

How Secuno handles this

Secuno correlates vulnerabilities like CVE-2026-49237 against the real software inventory on every managed device, as each hourly inventory arrives. Rather than a static severity, each match is scored in context: exploit availability, EPSS, the asset's exposure, and business criticality decide where it lands in the queue. If an affected version is present anywhere across your portfolio, it surfaces automatically with a prioritised remediation path.

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Data from the NVD, CISA KEV catalog and FIRST EPSS. CVSS 3.1 base score shown where available.