CVE-2026-48066

Authentication denial via thread-unsafe logging pointer

Published May 27, 2026 · Updated May 27, 2026

Race condition in pam_usb before 0.9.1 allows local users to disrupt authentication by triggering concurrent PAM invocations. pusb_log_init stores each invocation's stack-local options address in a process-wide static pointer, so a racing thread can replace it or leave it dangling. Exploitation requires concurrent authentication in one process and can corrupt log output or crash that PAM client, interrupting its authentication service.

CVSS severity5.7
Medium
EPSS probability0.12%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Race condition in pam_usb before 0.9.1 allows local users to disrupt authentication by triggering concurrent PAM invocations. pusb_log_init stores each invocation's stack-local options address in a process-wide static pointer, so a racing thread can replace it or leave it dangling. Exploitation requires concurrent authentication in one process and can corrupt log output or crash that PAM client, interrupting its authentication service.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-48066
Published
May 27, 2026
Updated
May 27, 2026
Vendor
mcdope
Product
pam_usb
Classifications
CWE-362, CWE-476, T1499.004
Attack vector
local
Privileges
unauthenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. May 27, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. May 27, 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=< 0.9.1

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesunauthenticated

What is affected?

mcdope · pam_usbversion=< 0.9.1

Published CVSS scores

5.7GitHubCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/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.

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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
Privilegesunauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-362Concurrent Execution using Shared Resource with Improper Synchronization ('Race Condition')
CWE-476NULL Pointer Dereference
T1499.004Application or System Exploitation

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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