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PipeWire CVE-2026-5674

| EUVDEUVD-2026-44925 HIGH
Uncontrolled Search Path Element (CWE-427)
2026-07-16 redhat GHSA-c85p-55wv-w2q5
RCE Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 Red Hat
8.8
CVSS 3.1 · Vendor: redhat
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Attack ChainAIDerived

Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain

  1. Access
    Gain code execution inside Flatpak sandbox
  2. Delivery
    Access PipeWire PulseAudio compat socket
  3. Exploit
    Point loader at malicious library
  4. Execution
    PipeWire loads attacker library on host
  5. Persist
    Execute code outside sandbox
  6. Impact
    Compromise user session

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
CWE-427
OWASP Top 10:2025
A08:2025 - Software or Data Integrity Failures
ASVS 5.0
V13 - Configuration Search path element control
Exploitation Conditions

Exploitation requires the attacker to already be executing code with low privileges inside a sandboxed application (e.g. a Flatpak app) that has access to PipeWire's PulseAudio compatibility layer / PulseAudio socket - that socket exposure and the presence of the pipewire-pulseaudio component are the exact prerequisites (AV:L, PR:L). No user interaction is needed (UI:N) and no special tuning beyond standard Flatpak audio access is implied. Limiting factors: it is not remotely reachable - the attacker needs a prior foothold in a confined process on the host; systems without the PulseAudio compatibility layer, or sandboxes not granted PulseAudio socket access, are not exploitable via this path.
Impact

The CVSS 3.1 vector (AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H, 8.8) fits the real risk profile: exploitation is local and needs only low privileges (a foothold inside the sandbox), requires no user interaction, and the scope change (S:C) captures the escape from the confined app into the host user session with full confidentiality, integrity and availability impact. The high base score is driven mainly by that scope change rather than remote reachability - the attacker must already be running code inside a sandboxed application. No EPSS score, KEV entry, POC, or SSVC data is provided in the input, so exploitation-probability signals are absent; there is no public exploit identified at time of analysis and it is not confirmed actively exploited. Net: a genuine and serious containment failure for multi-application desktop systems that rely on Flatpak confinement, but a local privilege/escape issue rather than an internet-facing RCE - note the source 'RCE' tag conflicts with the AV:L vector, which should be read as local sandbox escape.
Exploit ScenarioDerived

A user runs a malicious or compromised Flatpak application that holds ordinary audio permission. From inside its sandbox the app abuses the PulseAudio compatibility layer to make PipeWire load an attacker-supplied library, which then executes on the host outside the sandbox with the user's privileges. No public exploit is identified at time of analysis, but the low complexity and lack of required user interaction make the escape straightforward once malicious code is running inside a confined app.
This Week Schedule remediation this week. Why: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9).
No patch listed yet 0.1% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAIv1 – Jul 16, 2026

Sandbox escape in PipeWire's PulseAudio compatibility layer lets a low-privileged process inside a confined environment such as Flatpak load an attacker-controlled library and execute arbitrary code on the host user's session. The flaw (CWE-427) is present in PipeWire as shipped in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7, 8, 9 and 10 and carries a scope-changing CVSS 3.1 score of 8.8. There is no public exploit identified at time of analysis, and it is not listed in CISA KEV.

RemediationAI

No vendor-released patch version is identified in the input at time of analysis; monitor the Red Hat advisory at https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-5674 and Bugzilla 2455341 (https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2455341) and update the pipewire and pipewire-pulseaudio packages to the fixed build for your RHEL release as soon as it is published, then restart the user session or PipeWire services so the patched code loads. As a compensating control until patched, disable or remove the PulseAudio compatibility layer (the pipewire-pulseaudio / pipewire-pulse component) where legacy PulseAudio clients are not required - this closes the abused code path but breaks audio for applications that still speak the PulseAudio protocol. Additionally, tighten Flatpak permissions so untrusted sandboxed apps do not receive PulseAudio/PipeWire socket access (remove the pulseaudio socket from their permission set), accepting that those apps lose audio, and avoid running untrusted Flatpak applications on affected hosts until the update is applied.

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Technical ContextAI · show details

PipeWire is the modern Linux multimedia server that handles audio and video routing on most current desktop distributions, and it ships a PulseAudio compatibility layer so legacy PulseAudio clients keep working. The vulnerability is an untrusted-search-path / uncontrolled library-load issue (CWE-427): the PulseAudio compatibility path can be steered into loading a library from an attacker-influenced location. Because Flatpak and similar sandboxes expose the PipeWire/PulseAudio socket into the confined app, a process inside the sandbox that can place or reference a malicious module gets that code executed by PipeWire on the host side, crossing the sandbox trust boundary. The affected components are identified in the input via Red Hat CPEs for red_hat_enterprise_linux 7, 8, 9 and 10.

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Severity by source

Vendor (redhat) PRIMARY 8.8 HIGH
AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H
vuln.today AI 8.8 HIGH

Attacker needs a low-privilege foothold inside the sandbox (AV:L/PR:L), no user interaction, and the escape crosses the sandbox boundary (S:C), yielding full host-session C/I/A impact.

3.1 AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H
4.0 AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:H/SI:H/SA:H
SUSE HIGH
Red Hat 8.8 HIGH

Primary rating from Vendor (redhat).

CVSS VectorVendor: redhat

Attack Vector
Local
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
Low
User Interaction
None
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

DescriptionCVE.org

A flaw was found in PipeWire, a multimedia server. This vulnerability allows an attacker to escape sandboxed applications, such as Flatpak, by exploiting PipeWire's PulseAudio compatibility layer. An attacker with minimal permissions within a sandboxed environment can load a malicious library, leading to arbitrary code execution outside the sandbox and potential compromise of the user's system.

Executive ViewAI

Why It Matters

PipeWire's audio compatibility layer in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7-10 contains a scope-changing vulnerability (CVSS 8.8) enabling confined applications to escape sandbox restrictions and execute arbitrary code on the host user session. While no public exploit has been identified at time of analysis, the vulnerability's ease of exploitation and scope-changing nature present immediate risk to any organization deploying Flatpak, containerized desktops, or sandboxed applications on RHEL. Immediate isolation and interim controls are required pending patch availability from Red Hat.

Business Impact: High
Compensating Controls

Disable PulseAudio compatibility mode in PipeWire if not required; restrict unprivileged user access to PipeWire sockets via file permissions and AppArmor/SELinux policies; disable Flatpak on systems where not operationally necessary; implement application whitelisting to restrict library loading; monitor system audit logs for unexpected library loading attempts and privilege escalation; segment affected systems from critical infrastructure where possible pending patch availability.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.1%
Top 98% exploitable
Prevalence
High
default multimedia server on most modern Linux desktop deployments
Social Media
2
Sightings
Data Quality
7 sources
Confidence: High
EUVD NVD CVE.org EPSS Vulnrichment Vendor CIRCL VulDB

How this decision was reached

The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.

SignalValue
Severity HIGH
CISA KEV No
Public POC No
EPSS 0.1%
Patch available No
Active threat No
Deciding rule
HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9)
What every action level means
Emergency Immediate action required. Criteria: CRITICAL + in CISA KEV (actively exploited) without patch, OR CRITICAL + EPSS > 30% without patch, OR CRITICAL + active threat signals without patch.
Act Now Prioritize within 24-48h. Criteria: in KEV with patch available, OR CRITICAL + public POC, OR HIGH + EPSS > 10%, OR CRITICAL + active threat, OR any CRITICAL severity.
This Week Schedule remediation this week. Criteria: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9). Patch within normal change window.
This Month Plan within 30 days. Criteria: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9), lower exploitation probability. Include in regular patch cycle.
Monitor Track and reassess. Criteria: LOW severity (CVSS 0.1-3.9), minimal exploitation risk. No immediate action needed.

SSVC AssessmentENISA

SSVC Decision
Scheduled
Exploitation
None
System Exposure· derived
Small
Automatable
No
Human Impact
High
Technical Impact
Total

Priority Score

44
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: 0
CVSS: +44
PoC: 0
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

Remote Code Execution CRITICAL

Remote Code Execution represents the critical moment when an attacker successfully runs arbitrary code on a target system without physical access.

Affected Products (CPE)CVE.org

cpe:2.3:a:red_hat:red_hat_enterprise_linux_10:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:red_hat:red_hat_enterprise_linux_10:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:red_hat:red_hat_enterprise_linux_10:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:red_hat:red_hat_enterprise_linux_7:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:red_hat:red_hat_enterprise_linux_8:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:red_hat:red_hat_enterprise_linux_8:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:red_hat:red_hat_enterprise_linux_8:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:red_hat:red_hat_enterprise_linux_9:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:red_hat:red_hat_enterprise_linux_9:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

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Vendor StatusVendor

SUSE

Severity: Important
Product Status
SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 15 SP7 Affected
SUSE Linux Enterprise High Performance Computing 15 SP7 Affected
SUSE Linux Enterprise Module for Basesystem 15 SP7 Affected
SUSE Linux Enterprise Module for Desktop Applications 15 SP7 Affected
SUSE Linux Enterprise Module for Package Hub 15 SP7 Affected

References

Advisories & patches
ADVISORY https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-5674 ADVISORY https://vuldb.com/vuln/379530 REF https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:47082 REF https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:47083 REF https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:51064 REF https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:56028 REF https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:56029 REF https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:61768 REF https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-5674 REF https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2455341

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