# CVE-2026-8784: npitre cramfs-tools cramfsck.c change_file_status symlink

> Local attackers can exploit symlink following in cramfsck to read or modify arbitrary files via crafted images.

- **Severity:** Medium 4.6 (`CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:H/UI:N/VC:L/VI:L/VA:L/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:P`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** An administrator
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 18 May 2026
- **Updated:** 18 May 2026
- **Also known as:** GHSA-qv27-xjwp-hw6f

## What is CVE-2026-8784?

CVE-2026-8784 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in npitre cramfs-tools, published on 18 May 2026. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

A vulnerability was detected in npitre cramfs-tools up to 2.2. Affected is the function change_file_status of the file cramfsck.c. Performing a manipulation results in symlink following. The attack requires a local approach. The exploit is now public and may be used. The patch is named b4a3a695c9873f824907bd15659f2a6ac7667b4f. It is recommended to apply a patch to fix this issue.

Weakness: CWE-61 (UNIX Symbolic Link (Symlink) Following), CWE-59 (Improper Link Resolution Before File Access)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-8784?


## How do I fix CVE-2026-8784?

No fix has been published for CVE-2026-8784 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2026-8784 being exploited?

It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2026-8784 exists.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-8784 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-8784 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in npitre cramfs-tools, published on 18 May 2026. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2026-8784 exists.

Affected product: npitre cramfs-tools. 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-2026-8784/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-8784/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-8784
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-8784
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-8784

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-8784/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.