CVE-2026-16552

Public on 2026-07-22
Modified on 2026-07-27
Description
A flaw was found in systemd-tmpfiles. When processing a tmpfiles.d configuration entry that writes to a file, systemd-tmpfiles can follow a symbolic link placed by an unprivileged local user, and an existing safety check does not detect this specific case because it always treats transitions away from the root user as safe. On systems where a tmpfiles.d configuration targets a path an unprivileged user can influence, this could allow that user to redirect a privileged systemd-tmpfiles write to a file of their choosing, though the content written remains determined by the existing configuration rather than by the unprivileged user. The highest threat from this vulnerability is to integrity.
Severity
Medium severity
Medium
See what this means
CVSS v3 Base Score
6.3
See breakdown

Affected Packages

Platform Package Release Date Advisory Status
Amazon Linux 2 - Core systemd Pending Fix
Amazon Linux 2023 systemd Pending Fix

CVSS Scores

Score Type Score Vector
Amazon Linux CVSSv3 6.3 CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:H