CVE-2026-41526: kcoreaddons — Fix

Description

In KDE KCoreAddons before 6.25, KShell::quoteArgs is intended to safely quote arguments so that they can be passed to a shell command. This parsing does not adequately handle metacharacters, leading to an escape from the shell. All applications relying on this method in a security-critical path to handle user input are affected and could be exploited. In particular, because sendInput() sends a string to a terminal, a control character such as \x01 can be used during injection.

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CVSS v3.1 Score

6.5

MEDIUM

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:L

EPSS — Exploit Prediction

0.0003

Probability of exploitation

0.09%

Percentile rank

EPSS estimates the probability that this vulnerability will be exploited in the wild within the next 30 days. A higher score means more likely to be exploited.

Weakness Type (CWE)

CWE-150 CWE-150

Affected Products

Vendor	Product	Versions
kde	kcoreaddons	< 6.25.0

References

Advisories & Patches

https://kde.org/info/security/advisory-20260427-1.txt

Other References

https://github.com/KDE/kcoreaddons/blob/50d360736c399502fedf203e95482b0d0e5a3ea2/src/lib/util/kshell.h#L168 https://github.com/KDE/kcoreaddons/blob/50d360736c399502fedf203e95482b0d0e5a3ea2/src/lib/util/kshell.h#L43-L49 https://github.com/KDE/kcoreaddons/releases/tag/v6.25.0 https://invent.kde.org/frameworks/kcoreaddons/

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-41526? +

In KDE KCoreAddons before 6.25, KShell::quoteArgs is intended to safely quote arguments so that they can be passed to a shell command. This parsing does not adequately handle metacharacters, leading to an escape from the shell. All applications relying on this method in a security-critical path to handle user input are affected and could be exploited. In particular, because sendInput() sends a string to a terminal, a control character such as \x01 can be used during injection. It has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 6.5 (MEDIUM).

How severe is CVE-2026-41526? +

CVE-2026-41526 has a CVSS v3.1 score of 6.5 out of 10, rated MEDIUM. This is a medium-severity vulnerability that should be remediated as part of regular maintenance. The EPSS score is 0.0003, placing it in the 0th percentile for exploitation probability.

What products are affected by CVE-2026-41526? +

CVE-2026-41526 affects products from kde, specifically: kcoreaddons. Check the affected products table above for specific version ranges.

How do I check if I'm vulnerable to CVE-2026-41526? +

You can use Secably's free Website Scanner to check your website for known vulnerabilities. For infrastructure scanning, use the Port Scanner to identify exposed services that may be affected. Check the vendor advisories linked above for specific patch and version information.

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