CVE-2026-53800

rsync < 3.5.0 Symlink Race Condition via --remove-source-files

MEDIUM
4.7
CVSS Score
Published: August 13, 2026 at 02:40 PM UTC
Updated: October 24, 2026 at 04:10 PM UTC
2 products affected across 2 vendorsRsyncRsync

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Severity
MEDIUM4.7
Exploit prediction
EPSS 0.1%
SSVC
No known exploit

Description

rsync before 3.5.0 contains a symlink race condition vulnerability in the --remove-source-files feature that allows attackers with symlink creation access to cause arbitrary file deletion. Attackers can atomically substitute a symlink for a source file between transfer completion and the unlink() call, causing rsync to delete the symlink target rather than the intended source file.

Affected

Our own answer: ranges merged, affected separated from platform-only, with confidence and review flags.

v < 3.5.0
Affected range stops below 3.5.0, so it looks safe — our inference, not a vendor statement
0 ≤ v ≤ 3.4.4
Vendor states this is fixed in 3.5.0 (unaffected)

Remediation

No guide yet

No remediation guidance has been written for this CVE yet. What the record does show:

SSVC — Action Prioritization

SSVCNo known exploitNot automatablePartial impact

SSVC signals action urgency (what to patch first), separate from CVSS which measures severity.

CVSS

4.7MEDIUMVulnCheck
Attack Vector
LOCAL
Complexity
HIGH
Privileges
LOW
User Interaction
NONE
Scope
UNCHANGED
Confidentiality
NONE
Integrity
NONE
Availability
HIGH
Vector?

Quick Info

StatusANALYZED
CWE
CWE-59CWE-367

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