CVE-2026-53789
Description
rsync before 3.5.0 contains an improper path handling vulnerability that allows a malicious sender to expand the scope of --delete operations beyond the intended destination subtree by sending a crafted file list that causes rsync to reclassify implied parent directory entries or treat synthetic paths as the transfer root. Attackers can exploit multiple variants including implied parent reclassification, synthetic root path construction, legacy protocol behavior below version 30, and non-directory root handling to cause the receiver to delete files outside the authorized destination directory.
Predictions
Heuristic predictions, AS-IS, for prioritization only.
Mitigations
No mitigations published for this CVE yet.
The vendor-content worker queues fetches as references arrive (check back in a few minutes). Or — if you've already worked around this in production — publish your fix to the community-verified tier.
Propose a mitigation on Community Mitigations published via the community go through AI scoring + 2 human reviewers + 7-day silent objection window before landing here withsource_tier=community-verified.
OS impact
Debian Affected 5 releases
| Version | Status | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
| trixie | Affected | — |
| sid | Affected | — |
| forky | Affected | — |
| bullseye | Affected | — |
| bookworm | Affected | — |
SUSE Affected 1 release
| Version | Status | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
| — | Affected | — |
References
- https://www.suse.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-53789.html
- https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2026-53789
- https://github.com/RsyncProject/rsync/releases/tag/v3.5.0
- https://github.com/RsyncProject/rsync/security/advisories/GHSA-fxwg-7hmf-xh5q
- https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/rsync-arbitrary-file-deletion-via-malicious-file-list
CWEs
CWE-807
Community-verified mitigations for this CVE will appear above when contributors publish them.
Verify integrity in audit chain (admin only). AS-IS.