High severity · published May 20, 2026
CVE-2026-29518
Rsync < 3.4.3 TOCTOU Race Condition Allows Symlink-Based Arbitrary File Write
7.0
CVSS
0.2%
EPSS
No
On KEV
Description
Rsync versions before 3.4.3 contain a time-of-check to time-of-use (TOCTOU) race condition in daemon file handling that allows attackers to redirect file writes outside intended directories by replacing parent directory components with symbolic links. Attackers with write access to a module path can exploit this race condition to create or overwrite arbitrary files, potentially modifying sensitive system files and achieving privilege escalation when the daemon runs with elevated privileges. This vulnerability can only be triggered if the chroot setting is false.
CVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Attack vector
Local
Complexity
High
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High
Scope
Unchanged
Exploitation
Is it being used?
Exploit prediction (EPSS)0.2% · higher than 4% of CVEs
Exploited in the wildNo evidence yet
CISA KEVNot listed
Ransomware campaign useNot known
Affected products
Which versions
RS
rsync · RsyncProject
before 3.4.3 · source: vendor, NVD
RH
Red Hat Discovery 2 · Red Hat
All versions, or not specified · source: CISA
RH
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 · Red Hat
All versions, or not specified · source: CISA
RH
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 · Red Hat
All versions, or not specified · source: CISA
RH
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 · Red Hat
All versions, or not specified · source: CISA
RH
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 · Red Hat
All versions, or not specified · source: CISA
RH
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 · Red Hat
All versions, or not specified · source: CISA
RH
Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4.22 · Red Hat
All versions, or not specified · source: CISA
References
NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-29518
CVE.org
https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-29518
Patch
https://github.com/RsyncProject/rsync/pull/895/changes/8471fdd1561049ef5f58df44a1811a50bd9a531d
Release Notes
https://github.com/RsyncProject/rsync/releases/tag/v3.4.3
michael.stapelberg.ch
https://michael.stapelberg.ch/posts/2026-05-24-minimal-memory-safe-go-rsync-vulns/
Third Party Advisory
https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/rsync-toctou-race-condition-allows-symlink-based-arbitrary-file-write
access.redhat.com
https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:26332
access.redhat.com
https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:26408
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