CVE-2026-28372: telnetd in GNU inetutils through 2.7 allows privilege escalation that can be exploited by abusing systemd serv

Q: How do I fix CVE-2026-28372?

inetutils: upgrade to newer than 2.7. Exact commands for each OS are on this page.

Q: Is CVE-2026-28372 being exploited?

CVE-2026-28372 is not on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities list at the time of the last update. Check again, as this can change.

Q: What does CVE-2026-28372 affect?

CVE-2026-28372 affects inetutils. Severity is high (CVSS 7.4). telnetd in GNU inetutils through 2.7 allows privilege escalation that can be exploited by abusing systemd service credentials support added to the login(1) implementation of util-linux in release 2.40. This is related to client control over

Q: How urgent is CVE-2026-28372?

Priority 40/100. High severity; Public exploit reference

This month

HIGH 7.4UPGRADE

CVE-2026-28372 is a high-severity flaw (CVSS 7.4) affecting inetutils. Below: why it ranks where it does, which versions are affected, what to do, and the exact commands.

telnetd in GNU inetutils through 2.7 allows privilege escalation that can be exploited by abusing systemd service credentials support added to the login(1) implementation of util-linux in release 2.40. This is related to client control over the CREDENTIALS_DIRECTORY environment variable, and requires an unprivileged local user to create a login.noauth file.

Why this priority

High severity
Public exploit reference

A fixed release or distro patch exists.

Risk facts

CVSS score	7.4 (High)
Attack vector	Local
Attack complexity	High
Privileges needed	None
User interaction	None
EPSS exploit chance	0.4% (top 64%)
CISA exploited list	No
Weakness	CWE-829
Published	2026-02-27
Last modified	2026-06-17

Publisher (CNA): MITRE · Vendor: gnu

Last updated 2026-06-17 · Sources: CVE Program, NVD, CISA KEV, EPSS and vendor advisories · How we score

Am I affected?

Timeline

2026-02-27 06:18 UTCPublished CVE record published
2026-06-17 10:28 UTCUpdated Record last modified

gnu inetutils UPGRADE

Affected: <= 2.7

Fixed in: newer than 2.7

Safe to downgrade to: no unaffected older release

1. Check installed version

apt-cache policy inetutils || rpm -q inetutils || inetutils --version

2. UPGRADE to newer than 2.7 (Debian / Ubuntu)

sudo apt update && sudo apt install --only-upgrade inetutils

2. UPGRADE (RHEL / Amazon Linux / Fedora)

sudo dnf upgrade inetutils

Note

Distros often backport fixes without changing the version number. Confirm with the distro advisory or changelog.

Verify at the official source NVD · CVE Program · Report a problem with this page
Scores and fixes here are computed automatically from those and other public sources. Confirm with the vendor advisory before changing production systems.

Quick answers

How do I fix CVE-2026-28372?

inetutils: upgrade to newer than 2.7. Exact commands for each OS are on this page.

Is CVE-2026-28372 being exploited?

CVE-2026-28372 is not on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities list at the time of the last update. Check again, as this can change.

What does CVE-2026-28372 affect?

CVE-2026-28372 affects inetutils. Severity is high (CVSS 7.4). telnetd in GNU inetutils through 2.7 allows privilege escalation that can be exploited by abusing systemd service credentials support added to the login(1) implementation of util-linux in release 2.40. This is related to client control over

How urgent is CVE-2026-28372?

Priority 40/100. High severity; Public exploit reference

Related CVEs

CVE-2026-24061 CRITICAL 9.8 EXPLOITED UPGRADE MITIGATE GNU InetUtils Argument Injection Vulnerability
CVE-2026-32772 LOW 3.4 UPGRADE telnet in GNU inetutils through 2.7 allows servers to read arbitrary environment variables from clients via NE
CVE-2026-32746 CRITICAL 9.8 UPGRADE telnetd in GNU inetutils through 2.7 allows an out-of-bounds write in the LINEMODE SLC (Set Local Characters)
CVE-2023-40303 HIGH 7.8 UPGRADE GNU inetutils before 2.5 may allow privilege escalation because of unchecked return values of set*id() family
CVE-2022-39028 HIGH 7.5 UPGRADE UPGRADE telnetd in GNU Inetutils through 2.3, MIT krb5-appl through 1.0.3, and derivative works has a NULL pointer der

References

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