CVE-2026-6861: A flaw was found in GNU Emacs

Routine

MEDIUM 6.1UPGRADE

CVE-2026-6861 is a medium-severity flaw (CVSS 6.1) affecting emacs. Below: why it ranks where it does, which versions are affected, what to do, and the exact commands.

A flaw was found in GNU Emacs. This vulnerability, a memory corruption issue, occurs when Emacs processes specially crafted SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics) CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) data. A local user could exploit this by convincing a victim to open a malicious SVG file, which may lead to a denial of service (DoS) or potentially information disclosure.

Why this priority

No elevated risk signals yet

A fixed release or distro patch exists.

Risk facts

CVSS score	6.1 (Medium)
Attack vector	Local
Attack complexity	Low
Privileges needed	None
User interaction	Required
EPSS exploit chance	0.1% (top 99%)
CISA exploited list	No
Weakness	CWE-193
Published	2026-04-22
Last modified	2026-10-26

Publisher (CNA): Red Hat, Inc. · Vendor: gnu

Last updated 2026-10-26 · Sources: CVE Program, NVD, CISA KEV, EPSS and vendor advisories · How we score

Am I affected?

Timeline

2026-04-22 14:17 UTCPublished CVE record published
2026-10-26 21:10 UTCUpdated Record last modified

gnu emacs UPGRADE

Affected: >= 28.1 and <= 30.2

Fixed in: newer than 30.2

Safe to downgrade to: a release before 28.1

1. Check installed version

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

2. UPGRADE to newer than 30.2 (Debian / Ubuntu)

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

2. UPGRADE (RHEL / Amazon Linux / Fedora)

sudo dnf upgrade emacs

Note

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

3. If no update is available yet, DOWNGRADE to a release before 28.1 (Debian / Ubuntu)

apt-cache madison emacs sudo apt install emacs=<VERSION_BEFORE_28.1> sudo apt-mark hold emacs

3. If no update is available yet, DOWNGRADE (RHEL / Amazon Linux / Fedora)

dnf --showduplicates list emacs sudo dnf downgrade emacs-<VERSION_BEFORE_28.1> sudo dnf versionlock add emacs

Downgrade risk

Downgrading can break dependent software and may reopen older bugs. Read the distro advisory first and test on a non-production host.

After downgrade

Restart the service, and keep the package held until a fixed release ships.

Advisories and coverage

Official advisories

Amazon Linux 2023 ALAS: ALAS2023-2026-3195 (important): emacs 2026-10-12

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-2026-6861?

emacs: upgrade to newer than 30.2. Exact commands for each OS are on this page.

Is CVE-2026-6861 being exploited?

CVE-2026-6861 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-2026-6861 affect?

CVE-2026-6861 affects emacs. Severity is medium (CVSS 6.1). A flaw was found in GNU Emacs. This vulnerability, a memory corruption issue, occurs when Emacs processes specially crafted SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics) CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) data. A local user could exploit this by convincing a vi

How urgent is CVE-2026-6861?

Priority 22/100. No elevated risk signals yet.

References

← Back to latest CVEs