CVE-2026-55569
Received Received - Intake

Symlink Attack in aqua Version Manager

Vulnerability report for CVE-2026-55569, including description, CVSS score, EPSS score, affected products, exploitability, helpful resources, and attack-flow context.

Publication date: 2026-08-28

Last updated on: 2026-08-28

Assigner: GitHub, Inc.

Description

aqua is a declarative command-line version manager written in Go. Prior to 2.60.1, pkg/unarchive/archives.go in the handler.HandleFile method calls os.Symlink with archives.FileInfo.LinkTarget without verifying that the target remains under the extraction destination. A later regular-file entry at the same archive path is opened with OpenFile using O_CREATE and O_WRONLY, which follows the attacker-planted symlink. A malicious or compromised package archive can therefore write attacker-controlled bytes outside aqua's extraction directory with the privileges of the user running aqua, potentially overwriting shell startup files, tool configuration, or writable executable paths. This issue is fixed in version 2.60.1.

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Meta Information

Published
2026-08-28
Last Modified
2026-08-28
Generated
2026-08-29
AI Q&A
2026-08-29
EPSS Evaluated
N/A
NVD
EUVD

Affected Vendors & Products

Showing 1 associated CPE
Vendor Product Version / Range
aqua aqua 2.60.1

Helpful Resources

Exploitability

CWE
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KEV
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CWE ID Description
CWE-59 The product attempts to access a file based on the filename, but it does not properly prevent that filename from identifying a link or shortcut that resolves to an unintended resource.
CWE-22 The product uses external input to construct a pathname that is intended to identify a file or directory that is located underneath a restricted parent directory, but the product does not properly neutralize special elements within the pathname that can cause the pathname to resolve to a location that is outside of the restricted directory.

Attack-Flow Graph

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Executive Summary

CVE-2026-55569 is a vulnerability in aqua, a Go-based command-line version manager. It allows attackers to exploit improper symlink handling during archive extraction. The tool fails to verify that symlink targets remain within the intended extraction directory. An attacker can craft a malicious archive that writes files outside this directory, potentially overwriting critical system or user files with the privileges of the user running aqua.

Detection Guidance

Check if you are running aqua versions prior to 2.60.1 by running: aqua version. Inspect downloaded archives for unexpected symlinks or paths escaping the extraction directory. Monitor filesystem writes outside intended directories during aqua operations.

Impact Analysis

This vulnerability can lead to unauthorized file writes outside the extraction directory. Attackers could overwrite shell startup files, tool configurations, or executable paths. If the overwritten files are later executed, it may result in user-level code execution. The impact depends on the user's filesystem permissions but could compromise system integrity or user data.

Mitigation Strategies

Upgrade aqua to version 2.60.1 or later immediately. Avoid using untrusted package archives until updated. Review filesystem permissions for files modified by aqua to detect potential unauthorized changes.

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