CVE-2026-54055 Kitty has an Arbitrary File Write via Symlink Race Condition in File Transmission Protocol
A local attacker can exploit a race condition in Kitty's file transmission protocol to write arbitrary files, leading to privilege escalation.
- Exploited in the wild
- Not known
- Login needed
- Any signed-in user
- Attackable
- Local or same network only
- Victim action needed
- A user has to click or open something
- Fix
- Available
What is CVE-2026-54055?
CVE-2026-54055 is a medium-severity vulnerability in kovidgoyal kitty, published on 12 Jun 2026. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.
Official description
Kitty is a cross-platform GPU based terminal. In versions prior to 0.47.2, a local privilege escalation vulnerability exists in kitty's file transmission protocol where a child process running in the terminal can write to arbitrary files on the filesystem by exploiting a TOCTOU (Time-of-Check-Time-of-Use) race condition between symlink validation and file creation. The `os.open()` call used to create files does not use `O_NOFOLLOW`, allowing an attacker to create a symlink between the initial stat check and the actual file open, causing the write to follow the symlink to an arbitrary destination. Version 0.47.2 fixes the issue.
Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-54055?
It affects 1 product.
Products include Kovidgoyal Kitty.
How do I fix CVE-2026-54055?
Upgrade to a fixed version.
Is CVE-2026-54055 being exploited?
It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2026-54055 exists.
Other vulnerabilities in kovidgoyal kitty
- CVE-2026-33642 Kitty has a Heap Buffer Over-Read/Write via Integer Overflow in compose_rectangles Bounds Check
- CVE-2026-42851 @kitty-edit DCS + --color=geninclude vulnerable to Unauthenticated in-process RCE
- CVE-2026-54056 Kitty has an arbitrary file overwrite via symlink following in `kitten dnd` remote drop staging
- CVE-2026-33633 Kitty has a Heap Buffer Overflow in its Graphics Protocol Handler
- CVE-2026-42850 Kitty has a shell command injection
Sources
Also known as DEBIAN-CVE-2026-54055, GHSA-q446-x7q6-vcxh, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-54055.