Root escalation via restore symlink race
Published Sep 10, 2026 · Updated Sep 10, 2026
A TOCTOU race in WebPros Plesk for Linux through 18.0.79.10 or 18.0.80.6 allows remote authenticated users to gain root access. During subscription content restore, Backup Manager follows a symlink after checking its target, allowing the target to change before an ownership operation. Ordinary customer Panel and FTP access is required; winning the race transfers ownership outside the subscription and yields full server control.
Summary
What happened
A TOCTOU race in WebPros Plesk for Linux through 18.0.79.10 or 18.0.80.6 allows remote authenticated users to gain root access. During subscription content restore, Backup Manager follows a symlink after checking its target, allowing the target to change before an ownership operation. Ordinary customer Panel and FTP access is required; winning the race transfers ownership outside the subscription and yields full server control.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-68488
- Published
- Sep 10, 2026
- Updated
- Sep 10, 2026
- Vendor
- WebPros
- Product
- Plesk
- Classifications
- CWE-367, T1068
- Attack vector
- network
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Sep 10, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Sep 10, 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.
- Affected versionversion=0 <=18.0.79.10
- Affected versionversion=0 <=18.0.80.6
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
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.
Weakness, pattern, technique
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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