CVE-2026-0965 Libssh: libssh: denial of service via improper configuration file handling
A local attacker can cause a denial of service in libssh by providing a malicious configuration file that triggers access to dangerous system files.
- Exploited in the wild
- Not known
- Login needed
- Any signed-in user
- Attackable
- Local or same network only
- Victim action needed
- Not needed
- Fix
- Available
What is CVE-2026-0965?
CVE-2026-0965 is a low-severity denial of service vulnerability in Redhat Enterprise Linux, published on 26 Mar 2026. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Official description
A flaw was found in libssh where it can attempt to open arbitrary files during configuration parsing. A local attacker can exploit this by providing a malicious configuration file or when the system is misconfigured. This vulnerability could lead to a Denial of Service (DoS) by causing the system to try and access dangerous files, such as block devices or large system files, which can disrupt normal operations.
Weakness: CWE-73
Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-0965?
It affects 2 products.
Products include Libssh Libssh, Redhat Enterprise Linux.
How do I fix CVE-2026-0965?
Apply the vendor's patch.
Upgrade, then put limits on request size, rate and nesting depth so one client cannot exhaust the service. More about Denial of service.
Is CVE-2026-0965 being exploited?
There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-0965 in the wild and no public exploit code.
Other vulnerabilities in Redhat Enterprise Linux
- CVE-2026-59851 Libssh: libssh: authentication bypass via missing gssapi principal check
- CVE-2025-5987 Libssh: invalid return code for chacha20 poly1305 with openssl backend
- CVE-2025-14821 Libssh: libssh: insecure default configuration leads to local man-in-the-middle attacks on windows
- CVE-2012-4560 Memory corruption in n/a
- CVE-2012-4562 Integer overflow in n/a
Sources
Also known as AZL-81089, BELL-CVE-2026-0965, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-0965, ECHO-297b-3c7f-90d1, GHSA-q35q-xwh9-8pgw, JLSEC-2026-780 and 2 more.