CVE-2026-54057: Kitty vulnerable to command injection via unsanitized OSC 21 query reply
Noroxi assessment
Priority: Monitor (action score 29/100)
- The sources we track (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, Metasploit, Nuclei, GitHub) show no public exploit code or exploitation in the wild.
- Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days: 0.17% (FIRST EPSS).
- Someone with local access to the system can trigger it. No account or password is required. No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.
- Fixed version: kitty (Debian:13) 0.41.1-2+deb13u2; kitty (Debian:14) 0.47.3-1; kitty (openSUSE:Leap 16.0) 0.48.2-bp160.1.1.
Low priority for now. Upgrade to kitty (Debian:13) 0.41.1-2+deb13u2; kitty (Debian:14) 0.47.3-1; kitty (openSUSE:Leap 16.0) 0.48.2-bp160.1.1 or later.
Generated automatically from the record's data: CVSS (NVD and CNA), CISA KEV and SSVC, FIRST EPSS, exploit sources, fixed versions. How we calculate it
Primary sources: NVD · CVE.org · FIRST EPSS
Kitty is a cross-platform GPU based terminal. In versions prior to 0.47.3, kitty's OSC 21 (color-control) query reply reflects attacker-controlled bytes, including newlines, into the shell's input without sanitization. Version 0.47.3 fixes the issue.
- Published
- Jun 12, 2026
- Updated
- Oct 25, 2026
- EPSS
- 0.1% · 6th percentile
- CWE
- CWE-94
Report tools
Action score
29
Monitor
Low priority for now.
- CVSS
- 29 / 40 · 7.3 / 10
- CISA KEV
- 0 / 30 · Not listed
- EPSS
- 0 / 30 · 0.1%
CISA SSVC decision
- Exploitation
- proof of concept
- Automatable
- no
- Technical impact
- total
Vulnrichment: CISA's decision-tree inputs.
CNA vs NVD score
- NVD
- —
- CNA · GitHub_M
- 7.3
- NVD has not scored this yet; the score shown is the CNA’s.
CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:P/PR:N/UI:P/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
The score given by the assigning authority versus NVD’s independent score. A gap means the severity is contested.
Get told when this record changes
- Not in KEV: no record of exploitation in the wild
- No public exploit code on record
- A fix has been released
If any of these changes, we'll tell you in the daily email digest.
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Noroxi analysis
What does it mean in your environment?
The assessment above is generated automatically from the record's data; it doesn't know your environment. Our team verifies on your systems whether this vulnerability is actually exploitable and which mitigation is enough.
We use this product, ask for helpAffected systems
Is your version affected?
Pick the product and type the version you run. It's compared with this record's version ranges in your browser; the version isn't sent anywhere.
| Vendor | Product | CPE |
|---|---|---|
| kovidgoyal | kitty | cpe:2.3:a:kovidgoyal:kitty |
Affected versions
NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.
- kovidgoyal kittybefore 0.47.3
Versions reported by the vendor
Affected version ranges reported by the assigning authority (GitHub_M). Independent of NVD's CPE analysis and usually ahead of it.
kovidgoyal kitty
- < 0.47.3affected
Package-level exposure
OSV and GitHub Advisory data: ecosystem, package and range. SBOM matching uses this table.
| Ecosystem | Package | Affected range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debian:12 | kitty | from 0 | — |
| Debian:13 | kitty | before 0.41.1-2+deb13u2 | 0.41.1-2+deb13u2 |
| Debian:14 | kitty | before 0.47.3-1 | 0.47.3-1 |
| openSUSE:Leap 16.0 | kitty | before 0.48.2-bp160.1.1 | 0.48.2-bp160.1.1 |
| openSUSE:Tumbleweed | kitty | before 0.47.3-1.1 | 0.47.3-1.1 |
Same product
kovidgoyal: all recordsOther highest-scoring records for the same primary product.
- CVE-2020-35605The Graphics Protocol feature in graphics.c in kitty before 0.19.3 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code because a filename cont40Plan
- CVE-2026-33642Kitty has a Heap Buffer Over-Read/Write via Integer Overflow in compose_rectangles Bounds Check39Monitor
- CVE-2026-33633Kitty has a Heap Buffer Overflow in its Graphics Protocol Handler35Monitor
Published before and after this one in the same product
- ← EarlierCVE-2026-54055Jun 12, 2026 · Kitty has an Arbitrary File Write via Symlink Race Condition in File Transmission Protocol20Monitor
- ← EarlierCVE-2026-54056Jun 12, 2026 · Kitty has an arbitrary file overwrite via symlink following in `kitten dnd` remote drop staging28Monitor
- Later →CVE-2026-72913Aug 10, 2026 · Kitty: Command injection into the child shell via chained @kitty-echo + @kitty-ssh DCS escape sequences29Monitor
Remediation
Which version to upgrade to
Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.
| Product / package | Fixed version | Source |
|---|---|---|
| debian:kitty | 0.41.1-2+deb13u2 · Debian:13 | Package registry (OSV) |
| opensuse:kitty | 0.47.3-1.1 · openSUSE:Tumbleweed | Package registry (OSV) |
Exploit status
No known public exploit
No public exploit has been observed yet. That doesn't mean you're safe, only that the bar is a little higher.
Research context
For pentesters and researchers: attack profile, score disagreement, timeline, patch commits, credits, variant and chain candidates, bug bounty scope. All derived from existing data; no exploit code.
Timeline
From publication to today: proof of concept, Metasploit module, CISA KEV and fix record. Dates are as reported by the sources.
No dated events beyond publication.
No history yet (it accumulates with the daily EPSS job).
Patch and commit links
Commit, PR and diff links among the references. A starting point for patch-diffing and variant hunting; fixes, not exploits.
No commit or PR link among the references.
Credits
All researchersFinders, reporters and analysts named in the CNA record. Click a name for that researcher’s other records.
No credits in the CNA record.
Variant candidates
Same product, same weakness class, within 18 months. If the patch missed the root cause, the sibling bug is here.
- CVE-2026-428510 days apart@kitty-edit DCS + --color=geninclude vulnerable to Unauthenticated in-process RCE31Monitor
Chain candidates
An authentication bypass and a privilege-requiring bug in the same product, published close together: combined they may become an unauthenticated path.
—
Bug bounty scope
No known public program.
Source: bounty-targets-data (public HackerOne, Bugcrowd, Intigriti, YesWeHack listings).
Technical details
Attack conditions
- Someone with local access to the system can trigger it.
- No account or password is required.
- No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.
If successful
- Confidentiality
- Integrity
- Availability
- Attack vector
- Local
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- P
- Scope
- X
Weakness class (CWE)
CWE-94 · Improper Control of Generation of Code ('Code Injection')CVSS vector
CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:P/PR:N/UI:P/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X
nvd-secondary
Attack context
MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.
Attack patterns (CAPEC)
Change log
- Fix✗ → ✓
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