FKIE_CVE-2026-28207
Vulnerability from fkie_nvd - Published: 2026-02-26 23:16 - Updated: 2026-02-27 17:16
Severity ?
Summary
Zen C is a systems programming language that compiles to human-readable GNU C/C11. Prior to version 0.4.2, a command injection vulnerability (CWE-78) in the Zen C compiler allows local attackers to execute arbitrary shell commands by providing a specially crafted output filename via the `-o` command-line argument. The vulnerability existed in the `main` application logic (specifically in `src/main.c`), where the compiler constructed a shell command string to invoke the backend C compiler. This command string was built by concatenating various arguments, including the user-controlled output filename, and was subsequently executed using the `system()` function. Because `system()` invokes a shell to parse and execute the command, shell metacharacters within the output filename were interpreted by the shell, leading to arbitrary command execution. An attacker who can influence the command-line arguments passed to the `zc` compiler (like through a build script or a CI/CD pipeline configuration) can execute arbitrary commands with the privileges of the user running the compiler. The vulnerability has been fixed in version 0.4.2 by removing `system()` calls, implementing `ArgList`, and internal argument handling. Users are advised to update to Zen C version v0.4.2 or later.
References
Impacted products
| Vendor | Product | Version |
|---|
{
"cveTags": [],
"descriptions": [
{
"lang": "en",
"value": "Zen C is a systems programming language that compiles to human-readable GNU C/C11. Prior to version 0.4.2, a command injection vulnerability (CWE-78) in the Zen C compiler allows local attackers to execute arbitrary shell commands by providing a specially crafted output filename via the `-o` command-line argument. The vulnerability existed in the `main` application logic (specifically in `src/main.c`), where the compiler constructed a shell command string to invoke the backend C compiler. This command string was built by concatenating various arguments, including the user-controlled output filename, and was subsequently executed using the `system()` function. Because `system()` invokes a shell to parse and execute the command, shell metacharacters within the output filename were interpreted by the shell, leading to arbitrary command execution. An attacker who can influence the command-line arguments passed to the `zc` compiler (like through a build script or a CI/CD pipeline configuration) can execute arbitrary commands with the privileges of the user running the compiler. The vulnerability has been fixed in version 0.4.2 by removing `system()` calls, implementing `ArgList`, and internal argument handling. Users are advised to update to Zen C version v0.4.2 or later."
},
{
"lang": "es",
"value": "Zen C es un lenguaje de programaci\u00f3n de sistemas que compila a GNU C/C11 legible por humanos. Antes de la versi\u00f3n 0.4.2, una vulnerabilidad de inyecci\u00f3n de comandos (CWE-78) en el compilador Zen C permite a atacantes locales ejecutar comandos de shell arbitrarios proporcionando un nombre de archivo de salida especialmente dise\u00f1ado a trav\u00e9s del argumento de l\u00ednea de comandos \u0027-o\u0027. La vulnerabilidad exist\u00eda en la l\u00f3gica de la aplicaci\u00f3n \u0027main\u0027 (espec\u00edficamente en \u0027src/main.c\u0027), donde el compilador constru\u00eda una cadena de comandos de shell para invocar al compilador C de backend. Esta cadena de comandos se constru\u00eda concatenando varios argumentos, incluyendo el nombre de archivo de salida controlado por el usuario, y posteriormente se ejecutaba usando la funci\u00f3n \u0027system()\u0027. Debido a que \u0027system()\u0027 invoca un shell para analizar y ejecutar el comando, los metacaracteres de shell dentro del nombre de archivo de salida eran interpretados por el shell, lo que llevaba a la ejecuci\u00f3n arbitraria de comandos. Un atacante que puede influir en los argumentos de l\u00ednea de comandos pasados al compilador \u0027zc\u0027 (como a trav\u00e9s de un script de compilaci\u00f3n o una configuraci\u00f3n de pipeline de CI/CD) puede ejecutar comandos arbitrarios con los privilegios del usuario que ejecuta el compilador. La vulnerabilidad ha sido corregida en la versi\u00f3n 0.4.2 eliminando las llamadas a \u0027system()\u0027, implementando \u0027ArgList\u0027 y el manejo interno de argumentos. Se aconseja a los usuarios actualizar a la versi\u00f3n v0.4.2 de Zen C o posterior."
}
],
"id": "CVE-2026-28207",
"lastModified": "2026-02-27T17:16:33.220",
"metrics": {
"cvssMetricV31": [
{
"cvssData": {
"attackComplexity": "LOW",
"attackVector": "LOCAL",
"availabilityImpact": "LOW",
"baseScore": 6.6,
"baseSeverity": "MEDIUM",
"confidentialityImpact": "LOW",
"integrityImpact": "HIGH",
"privilegesRequired": "NONE",
"scope": "UNCHANGED",
"userInteraction": "REQUIRED",
"vectorString": "CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:H/A:L",
"version": "3.1"
},
"exploitabilityScore": 1.8,
"impactScore": 4.7,
"source": "security-advisories@github.com",
"type": "Secondary"
}
]
},
"published": "2026-02-26T23:16:35.277",
"references": [
{
"source": "security-advisories@github.com",
"url": "https://github.com/z-libs/Zen-C/security/advisories/GHSA-9rff-x96h-76h2"
},
{
"source": "af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108",
"url": "https://f0nduesav0yarde.github.io/blog/vulnerabilities/cve-2026-28207/"
}
],
"sourceIdentifier": "security-advisories@github.com",
"vulnStatus": "Awaiting Analysis",
"weaknesses": [
{
"description": [
{
"lang": "en",
"value": "CWE-78"
}
],
"source": "security-advisories@github.com",
"type": "Secondary"
}
]
}
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Sightings
| Author | Source | Type | Date |
|---|
Nomenclature
- Seen: The vulnerability was mentioned, discussed, or observed by the user.
- Confirmed: The vulnerability has been validated from an analyst's perspective.
- Published Proof of Concept: A public proof of concept is available for this vulnerability.
- Exploited: The vulnerability was observed as exploited by the user who reported the sighting.
- Patched: The vulnerability was observed as successfully patched by the user who reported the sighting.
- Not exploited: The vulnerability was not observed as exploited by the user who reported the sighting.
- Not confirmed: The user expressed doubt about the validity of the vulnerability.
- Not patched: The vulnerability was not observed as successfully patched by the user who reported the sighting.
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