CVE-2026-53799

MEDIUM 6.3

rsync < 3.5.0 Symlink Race Condition via ACL/xattr Application

CVSS Score

6.3

EPSS Score

0.0%

EPSS Percentile

0th

rsync before 3.5.0 contains a symlink race condition vulnerability that allows local attackers to cause rsync to apply arbitrary ACLs or extended attributes to unintended files by substituting a symlink at a predictable destination path between the file write and the subsequent acl_set_file() or lsetxattr() call. Attackers can exploit this timing window to redirect ACL and xattr application through a crafted symlink to files outside the intended destination tree, potentially granting elevated permissions and enabling local privilege escalation.

CWE	CWE-59 CWE-367
Vendor	rsyncproject
Product	rsync
Published	Aug 13, 2026

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CVSS v3 Breakdown

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N

Attack Vector

Local

Attack Complexity

High

Privileges Required

Low

User Interaction

None

Scope

Unchanged

Confidentiality

High

Integrity

High

Availability

None

Affected Versions

RsyncProject / rsync

0 ≤ 3.4.4

References

NVD ↗ CVE.org ↗ EPSS Data ↗

github.com: https://github.com/RsyncProject/rsync/security/advisories/GHSA-phxh-hjqv-39c9 github.com: https://github.com/RsyncProject/rsync/releases/tag/v3.5.0 vulncheck.com: https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/rsync-symlink-race-condition-via-acl-xattr-application

Credits

gregkh