CVE-2026-9560

Local privilege escalation via privileged-helper command injection

Published May 26, 2026 · Updated May 26, 2026

OS command injection in OpenVPN Connect 3.5.1 through 3.8.1 on macOS allows local users to execute commands with elevated privileges. The macOS privileged helper accepts command-bearing IPC requests and passes attacker-controlled input to OS command execution without adequate neutralization. Local access to the IPC endpoint is the only reported gate, and successful injection grants the helper's elevated command-execution context.

CVSS severity9.4
Critical
EPSS probability0.57%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

OS command injection in OpenVPN Connect 3.5.1 through 3.8.1 on macOS allows local users to execute commands with elevated privileges. The macOS privileged helper accepts command-bearing IPC requests and passes attacker-controlled input to OS command execution without adequate neutralization. Local access to the IPC endpoint is the only reported gate, and successful injection grants the helper's elevated command-execution context.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-9560
Published
May 26, 2026
Updated
May 26, 2026
Vendor
OpenVPN Inc.
Product
OpenVPN Connect
Classifications
CWE-267, CWE-78, CWE-648, CWE-270, T1068
Attack vector
local
Privileges
unauthenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. May 26, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. May 26, 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=3.5.1 <=3.8.1

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesunauthenticated

What is affected?

OpenVPN Inc. · OpenVPN Connectversion=3.5.1 <=3.8.1

Published CVSS scores

7.8NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
9.4OpenVPN Inc.CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:H/SI:H/SA: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
Privilegesunauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-267Privilege Defined With Unsafe Actions
CWE-78Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection')
CWE-648Incorrect Use of Privileged APIs
CWE-270Privilege Context Switching Error
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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