CVE-2026-16842

Received Received - Intake

Command Injection Vulnerability in IBM AIX and PowerVM VIOS

Publication date: 2026-08-19

Last updated on: 2026-08-19

Assigner: IBM Corporation

Description

IBM AIX 7.2, and 7.3 and IBM PowerVM VIOS 4.1 could allow a remote attacker to execute arbitrary commands due to improper neutralization of special elements used in an OS command.

CVSS Scores

EPSS Scores

Probability:
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Meta Information

Published

2026-08-19

Last Modified

2026-08-19

Generated

2026-08-20

AI Q&A

2026-08-20

EPSS Evaluated

N/A

NVD

CVE-2026-16842

EUVD

EUVD-2026-62732

Affected Vendors & Products

Vendor	Product	Version / Range
ibm	aix	From 7.2 (inc)
ibm	aix	From 7.3 (inc)
ibm	powervm_vios	From 4.1 (inc)
ibm	aix	7.2
ibm	aix	7.3
ibm	powervm_vios	4.1

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.

Attack-Flow Graph

Executive Summary

This vulnerability in IBM AIX 7.2, 7.3, and IBM PowerVM VIOS 4.1 allows a remote attacker to execute arbitrary commands. It occurs due to improper neutralization of special elements used in an OS command, meaning the system fails to properly filter or sanitize input that could be used to inject malicious commands.

Impact Analysis

An attacker could exploit this to run unauthorized commands on your system, potentially leading to data breaches, system compromise, or unauthorized access. This could result in loss of sensitive data, system downtime, or further attacks within your network.

Compliance Impact

This vulnerability could lead to unauthorized access or data breaches, violating compliance requirements under GDPR (data protection) and HIPAA (healthcare data privacy). Non-compliance may result in legal penalties, fines, or reputational damage.

Mitigation Strategies

Apply IBM-provided patches or updates for AIX 7.2, 7.3, and PowerVM VIOS 4.1. Isolate affected systems from untrusted networks. Monitor IBM security advisories for further guidance.

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