CVE-2026-5917

libgit2 Shell Command Injection via ssh_libssh2 Backend

HIGH
8.8
CVSS Score
Published: August 11, 2026 at 09:40 PM UTC
Updated: October 1, 2026 at 03:20 PM UTC
1 product affected across 1 vendorLIBGIT2

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Severity
HIGH8.8
Exploit prediction
EPSS 1%
SSVC
No known exploit

Description

libgit2 versions v0.27.0 through v1.9.0 built with the libssh2 SSH backend (USE_SSH=libssh2) contain a shell command injection vulnerability that allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary commands on an SSH server by supplying a repository path containing unescaped shell metacharacters such as single quotes, semicolons, or pipes. The gen_proto() function in ssh_libssh2.c inserts the repository path directly into a shell command string without escaping special characters before passing it to libssh2_channel_exec(), enabling an attacker to craft a malicious submodule URL in a .gitmodules file that, when processed during a recursive clone, causes the remote server's shell to interpret injected commands under the victim's SSH user account.

Affected

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

v < 1.8.71.9.0 ≤ v < 1.9.71.9.0
Affected range stops below 1.8.7, so it looks safe — our inference, not a vendor statement
Affected range stops below 1.9.7, so it looks safe — our inference, not a vendor statement

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 automatableTotal impact

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

CVSS

8.8HIGHVulnCheck
Attack Vector
NETWORK
Complexity
LOW
Privileges
NONE
User Interaction
REQUIRED
Scope
UNCHANGED
Confidentiality
HIGH
Integrity
HIGH
Availability
HIGH
Vector?

Quick Info

StatusDEFERRED
CWE
CWE-78

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