CVE-2026-23988
7.3 · HIGHOverview
CVE-2026-23988 is a high-severity vulnerability affecting akeo rufus. It was published on January 22, 2026 and has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.3 (HIGH).
This vulnerability has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.3, rated HIGH. It requires local or adjacent network access to exploit. Some level of privileges is required for exploitation.
Technical Description
Rufus is a utility that helps format and create bootable USB flash drives. Versions 4.11 and below contain a race condition (TOCTOU) in src/net.c during the creation, validation, and execution of the Fido PowerShell script. Since Rufus runs with elevated privileges (Administrator) but writes the script to the %TEMP% directory (writeable by standard users) without locking the file, a local attacker can replace the legitimate script with a malicious one between the file write operation and the execution step. This allows arbitrary code execution with Administrator privileges. This issue has been fixed in version 4.12_BETA.
Remediation
Check the references section for vendor advisories and patches from akeo. Update rufus to the latest patched version. If immediate patching is not possible, review the CVSS vector to understand the attack surface and apply compensating controls such as network segmentation or access restrictions.
Affected Products
| Vendor | Product | Versions | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| akeo | rufus | >= 0, < 4.12 | Affected |
Frequently Asked Questions
What is CVE-2026-23988?
CVE-2026-23988 is a high-severity vulnerability affecting akeo rufus. It was published on January 22, 2026 and has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.3 (HIGH).
How severe is CVE-2026-23988?
This vulnerability has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.3, rated HIGH. It requires local or adjacent network access to exploit. Some level of privileges is required for exploitation.
How do I fix or remediate CVE-2026-23988?
Check the references section for vendor advisories and patches from akeo. Update rufus to the latest patched version. If immediate patching is not possible, review the CVSS vector to understand the attack surface and apply compensating controls such as network segmentation or access restrictions.
How can CyberStrike help with CVE-2026-23988?
CyberStrike's AI-powered security agents can automatically detect CVE-2026-23988 across your infrastructure using autonomous pentesting, DAST scanning, and HackBrowser. The platform continuously monitors for known vulnerabilities and provides actionable remediation guidance prioritized by real-world exploitability.
How CyberStrike Helps
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