CVE-2026-16703

Low-privilege local user escalation

Published Aug 19, 2026 · Updated Aug 20, 2026

Improper privilege management in IBM AIX 7.2 and 7.3 and PowerVM VIOS 4.1 allows local users to gain elevated privileges. IBM has not disclosed the affected component or the operation that improperly manages privileges. A low-privilege local account is required; successful exploitation grants privileges that can expose or alter data and interrupt the system.

CVSS severity7.8
High
EPSS probability0.09%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Improper privilege management in IBM AIX 7.2 and 7.3 and PowerVM VIOS 4.1 allows local users to gain elevated privileges. IBM has not disclosed the affected component or the operation that improperly manages privileges. A low-privilege local account is required; successful exploitation grants privileges that can expose or alter data and interrupt the system.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-16703
Published
Aug 19, 2026
Updated
Aug 20, 2026
Vendor
IBM
Product
AIX
Classifications
CWE-269, T1068
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Aug 19, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Aug 20, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=7.2
  2. Affected versionversion=7.3

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

IBM · AIXversion=7.2; version=7.3
IBM · PowerVM Virtual I/O Serverversion=4.1

Published CVSS scores

7.8IBMCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-269Improper Privilege Management
T1068Exploitation for Privilege Escalation

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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