# 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.

- **Severity:** Low 3.3 (`CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L`)
- **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:** Yes
- **Published:** 26 Mar 2026
- **Updated:** 1 Sep 2026
- **Also known as:** AZL-81089, BELL-CVE-2026-0965, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-0965, ECHO-297b-3c7f-90d1, GHSA-q35q-xwh9-8pgw, JLSEC-2026-780, MINI-mvjq-5wh3-68p6, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-0965

## 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 (External Control of File Name or Path)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-0965?

It affects 2 products.


Products: Libssh Libssh, Redhat Enterprise Linux.

## How do I fix CVE-2026-0965?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## 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](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-59851/): Libssh: libssh: authentication bypass via missing gssapi principal check (high 8.8)
- [CVE-2025-5987](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-5987/): Libssh: invalid return code for chacha20 poly1305 with openssl backend (high 8.1)
- [CVE-2025-14821](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-14821/): Libssh: libssh: insecure default configuration leads to local man-in-the-middle attacks on windows (high 7.8)
- [CVE-2012-4560](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2012-4560/): Memory corruption in n/a (high 7.5)
- [CVE-2012-4562](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2012-4562/): Integer overflow in n/a (high 7.5)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-0965 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: 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.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-0965 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Redhat Enterprise Linux. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-0965/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-0965/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-0965
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-0965
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-0965

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-0965/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.