CVE-2026-24061
CRITICAL
2026-01-21
[email protected]
9.8
CVSS 3.1
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CVSS Vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Attack Vector
Network
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
None
User Interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High
Lifecycle Timeline
5
Analysis Generated
Mar 12, 2026 - 21:54 vuln.today
Added to CISA KEV
Feb 11, 2026 - 15:40 cisa
CISA KEV
PoC Detected
Feb 11, 2026 - 15:40 vuln.today
Public exploit code
Patch Released
Feb 11, 2026 - 15:40 nvd
Patch available
CVE Published
Jan 21, 2026 - 07:16 nvd
CRITICAL 9.8
Description
telnetd in GNU Inetutils through 2.7 allows remote authentication bypass via a "-f root" value for the USER environment variable.
Analysis
GNU Inetutils telnetd through version 2.7 contains a critical authentication bypass that allows remote attackers to gain root access by setting the USER environment variable to '-f root' during TELNET negotiation. With EPSS 75% and KEV listing, this trivially exploitable vulnerability (CVE-2026-24061) has been widely weaponized. …
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Remediation
Within 24 hours: Identify all affected systems running GNU Inetutils and apply vendor patches immediately. Vendor patch is available.
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Priority Score
194
Low
Medium
High
Critical
KEV: +50
EPSS: +75.3
CVSS: +49
POC: +20
Vendor Status
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External POC / Exploit Code
Leaving vuln.today
Destination URL
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