CVE-2026-64824 Home Assistant Core < 2026.7.0 Symlink Path Traversal RCE via backup-restore
Attackers can achieve remote code execution by exploiting a symlink path traversal in the backup-restore function to overwrite critical Python files.
- Exploited in the wild
- Not known
- Login needed
- An administrator
- Attackable
- Over the internet
- Victim action needed
- A user has to click or open something
- Fix
- Available
What is CVE-2026-64824?
CVE-2026-64824 is a critical path traversal vulnerability in home-assistant Home Assistant Core, published on 21 Jul 2026. An attacker needs administrator access to exploit it, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.
Official description
Home Assistant Core before 2026.7.0 contains a path traversal vulnerability in the backup-restore function that allows attackers to write files to arbitrary absolute filesystem paths by supplying a crafted tar archive with a SYMTYPE entry containing a benign member name paired with an absolute linkname pointing outside the extraction directory. Because the official Docker image runs the Home Assistant process as root and the subsequent regular-file entry is written through the unvalidated symlink, attackers can achieve remote code execution by overwriting auto-imported Python paths such as site-packages/sitecustomize.py or custom component directories.
Weakness: CWE-22
Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-64824?
How do I fix CVE-2026-64824?
Upgrade to a fixed version.
Upgrade, and resolve every user-supplied path against an allowed base folder before opening it. More about Path traversal.
Is CVE-2026-64824 being exploited?
It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2026-64824 exists.
Public exploit code: 1 proofs of concept on GitHub.
Sources
Also known as GHSA-cwh8-w64c-4j5h.