CVE-2026-28417

Received Received - Intake

OS Command Injection in Vim netrw Plugin Allows Arbitrary Code Execution

Publication date: 2026-02-27

Last updated on: 2026-03-03

Assigner: GitHub, Inc.

Description

Vim is an open source, command line text editor. Prior to version 9.2.0073, an OS command injection vulnerability exists in the `netrw` standard plugin bundled with Vim. By inducing a user to open a crafted URL (e.g., using the `scp://` protocol handler), an attacker can execute arbitrary shell commands with the privileges of the Vim process. Version 9.2.0073 fixes the issue.

CVSS Scores

EPSS Scores

Probability:
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Meta Information

Published

2026-02-27

Last Modified

2026-03-03

Generated

2026-07-06

AI Q&A

2026-02-28

EPSS Evaluated

2026-07-05

NVD

CVE-2026-28417

EUVD

EUVD-2026-9085

Affected Vendors & Products

Vendor	Product	Version / Range
vim	vim	to 9.2.0073 (exc)

Helpful Resources

Exploitability

CWE

KEV

CWE ID	Description
CWE-78	The product constructs all or part of an OS command using externally-influenced input from an upstream component, but it does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes special elements that could modify the intended OS command when it is sent to a downstream component.
CWE-86	The product does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes invalid characters or byte sequences in the middle of tag names, URI schemes, and other identifiers.

Attack-Flow Graph

Detection Guidance

I don't know

Executive Summary

This vulnerability exists in the netrw standard plugin bundled with Vim, an open source command line text editor. Before version 9.2.0073, an attacker could exploit this vulnerability by tricking a user into opening a specially crafted URL, such as one using the scp:// protocol handler. Doing so allows the attacker to execute arbitrary shell commands with the same privileges as the Vim process.

Impact Analysis

If exploited, this vulnerability can allow an attacker to run arbitrary shell commands on your system with the privileges of the Vim process. This could lead to unauthorized actions such as modifying files, stealing data, or further compromising the system depending on the permissions Vim has.

Compliance Impact

I don't know

Mitigation Strategies

To mitigate this vulnerability, you should upgrade Vim to version 9.2.0073 or later, as this version fixes the OS command injection issue in the netrw plugin.

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