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libssh CVE-2025-14821

| EUVDEUVD-2025-209270 HIGH
Uncontrolled Search Path Element (CWE-427)
2026-04-07 redhat
Microsoft Information Disclosure Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 Red Hat Hardened Images 1 Red Hat Openshift Container Platform 4
High
Disputed · 7.0 NVD
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Severity by source

Sources disagree (Low–High)
NVD PRIMARY
7.0 HIGH
AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
vuln.today AI
7.0 HIGH

Local unprivileged user writes C:\etc (AV:L/PR:L); success depends on another process consuming the planted config (AC:H); full SSH session compromise yields C:H/I:H/A:H.

3.1 AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
4.0 AV:L/AC:H/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
SUSE
7.8 HIGH
AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Red Hat
7.8 LOW
qualitative

vuln.today treats the vendor’s rating as authoritative. A higher third-party CVSS (e.g. CISA-ADP) is shown for transparency but does not drive the headline severity.

CVSS VectorNVD

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Attack Vector
Local
Attack Complexity
High
Privileges Required
Low
User Interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

Lifecycle Timeline

8
Analysis Updated
Jun 25, 2026 - 07:29 vuln.today
v4 (cvss_changed)
Analysis Updated
Jun 25, 2026 - 07:28 vuln.today
v3 (cvss_changed)
CVSS changed
Jun 25, 2026 - 07:22 NVD
7.8 (HIGH) 7.0 (HIGH)
Analysis Updated
Apr 25, 2026 - 00:27 vuln.today
v2 (cvss_changed)
Re-analysis Queued
Apr 25, 2026 - 00:22 vuln.today
cvss_changed
EUVD ID Assigned
Apr 07, 2026 - 17:00 euvd
EUVD-2025-209270
Analysis Generated
Apr 07, 2026 - 17:00 vuln.today
CVE Published
Apr 07, 2026 - 16:34 nvd
HIGH 7.8

DescriptionNVD

A flaw was found in libssh. This vulnerability allows local man-in-the-middle attacks, security downgrades of SSH (Secure Shell) connections, and manipulation of trusted host information, posing a significant risk to the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of SSH communications via an insecure default configuration on Windows systems where the library automatically loads configuration files from the C:\etc directory, which can be created and modified by unprivileged local users.

AnalysisAI

Local man-in-the-middle and SSH security downgrade in libssh on Windows stems from the library automatically loading configuration files from C:\etc, a directory that any unprivileged local user can create and populate. By planting a malicious config, an attacker can manipulate trusted host data and weaken SSH cryptographic negotiation, compromising the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of SSH sessions established by applications linking libssh. There is no public exploit identified at time of analysis, EPSS is negligible (0.01%), and it is not in CISA KEV.

Technical ContextAI

libssh is a multiplatform C library implementing the SSHv2 protocol used by numerous applications to act as SSH clients or servers. The root cause maps to CWE-427 (Uncontrolled Search Path Element): on Windows the library resolves and loads its system configuration from a fixed absolute path, C:\etc, instead of a location protected by administrative ACLs. On Windows the root of a drive is writable by standard users by default, so an unprivileged account can create C:\etc and drop a libssh config that the library will trust. Because that config can redefine known-hosts handling and the offered key-exchange, cipher, and MAC algorithms, it lets an attacker force algorithm downgrades and tamper with host-trust decisions for any process that subsequently uses libssh. Note the supplied CPEs enumerate Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6-10, OpenShift Container Platform 4, and Red Hat Hardened Images rather than Windows builds, reflecting that the affected component (the libssh package) is tracked through Red Hat's catalog even though the insecure default path is Windows-specific.

RemediationAI

Upgrade libssh to a fixed release: Vendor-released patch: libssh 0.12.0 or 0.11.4 (https://www.libssh.org/2026/02/10/libssh-0-12-0-and-0-11-4-security-releases/); Red Hat users should apply the distribution update via RHSA-2026:7067 (https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:7067) and consult https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2025-14821. On Windows hosts that cannot be patched immediately, the targeted compensating control is to remove the search-path exposure: create C:\etc yourself and lock its ACLs so only Administrators and SYSTEM can write, preventing unprivileged users from planting a config, or otherwise restrict standard-user write access to the drive root; the trade-off is that legitimate per-system libssh configuration placed there must then be managed by an administrator. Where feasible, run libssh-based applications under accounts and on hosts where untrusted local users do not have interactive access, since exploitation requires a local foothold. Validate which platforms in your fleet actually load from C:\etc before relying on workarounds.

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Same weakness CWE-427 – Uncontrolled Search Path Element

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CVE-2023-31543 CRITICAL POC
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CVE-2019-7653 CRITICAL POC
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Same technique Information Disclosure

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CVE-2013-2251 CRITICAL POC
9.8
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CVE-2025-24813 CRITICAL POC
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CVE-2015-1701 HIGH POC
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CVE-2017-0147 HIGH POC
7.5
CVE-2014-6324 HIGH POC
8.8
CVE-2023-7028 CRITICAL POC
10.0
CVE-2017-0213 HIGH POC
7.3

Vendor StatusVendor

SUSE

Severity: High
Product Status
SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 15 SP7 Fixed
SUSE Linux Enterprise High Performance Computing 15 SP7 Fixed
SUSE Linux Enterprise Micro 5.2 Fixed
SUSE Linux Enterprise Micro 5.3 Fixed
SUSE Linux Enterprise Micro 5.4 Fixed

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CVE-2025-14821 vulnerability details – vuln.today
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