CVE-2026-72841Public exploitNetwork attack vector

Authenticated root code execution via upload traversal

Published Aug 13, 2026 · Updated Aug 18, 2026

Path traversal in OpenWrt LuCI 25.12.2 allows remote authenticated users to write arbitrary files through OpenVPN uploads. The upload handler concatenates instance_name2 directly after /etc/openvpn/ without sanitization or a directory-boundary check. Read-only OpenVPN configuration access is sufficient to place a reboot-executed payload that installs an authorized key and grants persistent root SSH access.

CVSS severity9.9
Critical
EPSS probability0.53%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Path traversal in OpenWrt LuCI 25.12.2 allows remote authenticated users to write arbitrary files through OpenVPN uploads. The upload handler concatenates instance_name2 directly after /etc/openvpn/ without sanitization or a directory-boundary check. Read-only OpenVPN configuration access is sufficient to place a reboot-executed payload that installs an authorized key and grants persistent root SSH access.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-72841
Published
Aug 13, 2026
Updated
Aug 18, 2026
Vendor
OpenWrt
Product
LuCI
Classifications
T1098.004, T1068
Attack vector
network
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Aug 13, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Aug 18, 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?

Affected versions are unavailable in this record. Check the vendor advisory for version and patch details.

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectornetwork
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

OpenWrt · LuCIAffected versions are unavailable in this record.

Published CVSS scores

9.9OpenWrtCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/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.

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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)
Vectornetwork
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitPublished

Weakness, pattern, technique

T1098.004SSH Authorized Keys
T1068Exploitation for Privilege Escalation

Public exploit references

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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