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Known Exploited Vulnerability
9.8
CRITICAL CVSS 3.1
CVE-2026-24061
GNU InetUtils Argument Injection Vulnerability - [Actively Exploited]
Description

telnetd in GNU Inetutils through 2.7 allows remote authentication bypass via a "-f root" value for the USER environment variable.

INFO

Published Date :

Jan. 21, 2026, 7:16 a.m.

Last Modified :

Jan. 30, 2026, 1:28 p.m.

Remotely Exploit :

Yes !

Source :

[email protected]
CISA Notification
CISA KEV (Known Exploited Vulnerabilities)

For the benefit of the cybersecurity community and network defenders—and to help every organization better manage vulnerabilities and keep pace with threat activity—CISA maintains the authoritative source of vulnerabilities that have been exploited in the wild.

Description :

GNU InetUtils contains an argument injection vulnerability in telnetd that could allow for remote authentication bypass via a "-f root" value for the USER environment variable.

Required Action :

Apply mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.

Notes :

This vulnerability could affect an open-source component, third-party library, protocol, or proprietary implementation that could be used by different products. For more information, please see: https://cgit.git.savannah.gnu.org/cgit/inetutils.git ; https://codeberg.org/inetutils/inetutils/commit/ccba9f748aa8d50a38d7748e2e60362edd6a32cc; https://codeberg.org/inetutils/inetutils/commit/fd702c02497b2f398e739e3119bed0b23dd7aa7b ; https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-24061

Affected Products

The following products are affected by CVE-2026-24061 vulnerability. Even if cvefeed.io is aware of the exact versions of the products that are affected, the information is not represented in the table below.

ID Vendor Product Action
1 Debian debian_linux
1 Gnu inetutils
: Total Affected Vendor : 2 | Products : 2
CVSS Scores
The Common Vulnerability Scoring System is a standardized framework for assessing the severity of vulnerabilities in software and systems. We collect and displays CVSS scores from various sources for each CVE.
Score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Score Impact Score Source
CVSS 3.1 CRITICAL 8254265b-2729-46b6-b9e3-3dfca2d5bfca
CVSS 3.1 CRITICAL [email protected]
Solution
Update GNU Inetutils to the latest version to prevent remote authentication bypass.
  • Update GNU Inetutils to a version later than 2.7.
  • Disable or remove telnetd if not required.
  • Restrict access to the telnet service.
Public PoC/Exploit Available at Github

CVE-2026-24061 has a 69 public PoC/Exploit available at Github. Go to the Public Exploits tab to see the list.

References to Advisories, Solutions, and Tools

Here, you will find a curated list of external links that provide in-depth information, practical solutions, and valuable tools related to CVE-2026-24061.

URL Resource
https://codeberg.org/inetutils/inetutils/commit/ccba9f748aa8d50a38d7748e2e60362edd6a32cc Patch
https://codeberg.org/inetutils/inetutils/commit/fd702c02497b2f398e739e3119bed0b23dd7aa7b Patch
https://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/bug-inetutils/2026-01/msg00004.html Mitigation Vendor Advisory
https://www.gnu.org/software/inetutils/ Product
https://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2026/01/20/2 Mailing List
https://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2026/01/20/8 Mailing List
http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2026/01/22/1 Mailing List
https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2026/01/msg00025.html Mailing List Third Party Advisory
https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2026-24061 US Government Resource
https://www.labs.greynoise.io/grimoire/2026-01-22-f-around-and-find-out-18-hours-of-unsolicited-houseguests/index.html Exploit Third Party Advisory
https://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2026/01/20/2#:~:[email protected]%3A~%20USER=' Mailing List Third Party Advisory
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration

While CVE identifies specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2026-24061 is associated with the following CWEs:

Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC)

Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC) stores attack patterns, which are descriptions of the common attributes and approaches employed by adversaries to exploit the CVE-2026-24061 weaknesses.

We scan GitHub repositories to detect new proof-of-concept exploits. Following list is a collection of public exploits and proof-of-concepts, which have been published on GitHub (sorted by the most recently updated).

Profile Photo
lucacapacci/PoC-in-GitHub

Mirror of https://github.com/nomi-sec/PoC-in-GitHub

Updated: 1 day, 16 hours ago
0 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : Feb. 7, 2026, 10:02 a.m. This repo has been linked 789 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
scumfrog/cve-2026-24061

CVE-2026-24061 PoC

Python

Updated: 3 days, 21 hours ago
0 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : Feb. 6, 2026, 5:06 p.m. This repo has been linked 1 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
nrnw/CVE-2026-24061-GNU-inetutils-Telnet-Detector

A passive detection tool for identifying potential exposure to CVE-2026-24061 in GNU inetutils telnet installations

Python

Updated: 4 days, 13 hours ago
0 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : Feb. 6, 2026, 12:36 a.m. This repo has been linked 1 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
killsystema/scan-cve-2026-24061

None

Python

Updated: 4 days, 22 hours ago
0 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : Feb. 5, 2026, 3:47 p.m. This repo has been linked 1 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
canpilayda/inetutils-telnetd-cve-2026-24061

None

Updated: 5 days, 17 hours ago
0 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : Feb. 4, 2026, 8:59 p.m. This repo has been linked 1 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
lavabyte/telnet-CVE-2026-24061

None

Updated: 5 days, 18 hours ago
0 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : Feb. 4, 2026, 7:22 p.m. This repo has been linked 1 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
obrunolima1910/obrunolima1910.github.io

🔍 Exploit CVE-2026-24061, a critical remote authentication bypass in GNU inetutils-telnetd, for instant root shell access without authentication.

Updated: 4 days, 8 hours ago
0 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : Feb. 3, 2026, 7:48 p.m. This repo has been linked 1 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
obrunolima1910/CVE-2026-24061

🚨 Exploit CVE-2026-24061, a critical remote authentication bypass in GNU inetutils-telnetd, for instant root shell access without authentication.

agent auth book computer-vision cv deep-learning gluon image-classification jupyter-notebook machine-learning mxnet neural-network person-reid pose-estimation root semantic-segmentation telnet

Python

Updated: 2 days, 15 hours ago
0 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : Feb. 3, 2026, 7:46 p.m. This repo has been linked 1 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
Moxxic1/moxxic1.github.io

🔍 Scan networks for CVE-2026-24061 vulnerabilities with this lightweight Python tool, enabling quick and easy batch detection of telnet authentication bypass.

Updated: 4 days, 12 hours ago
0 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : Feb. 3, 2026, 7:09 a.m. This repo has been linked 1 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
Moxxic1/Tell-Me-Root

🔍 Automate bulk detection of the CVE-2026-24061 Telnet authentication bypass vulnerability using this lightweight Python tool.

code-completion form-builder front-end google-forms gpt mscoco-image-dataset multi-agent secret-management secrets semantic-engine show-attend-and-tell telethon-bot telnetd-rce vault vim

Python

Updated: 2 days, 15 hours ago
0 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : Feb. 3, 2026, 7:03 a.m. This repo has been linked 1 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
Good123321-bot/good123321-bot.github.io

🔐 Exploit the GNU inetutils-telnetd authentication bypass vulnerability (CVE-2026-24061) to demonstrate remote login without credentials.

Updated: 1 week ago
0 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : Feb. 3, 2026, 5:57 a.m. This repo has been linked 1 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
olatunbosunoyeleke94/telnet-sec

Defensive Telnet parser & sanitizer in Rust, mitigates CVE-class protocol exploits.

Rust

Updated: 1 week ago
0 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : Feb. 3, 2026, 2:56 a.m. This repo has been linked 1 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
ibrahmsql/CVE-2026-24061-PoC

CVE-2026-24061 PoC and walkthrough

Python

Updated: 6 days, 23 hours ago
3 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : Feb. 2, 2026, 11:20 p.m. This repo has been linked 1 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
SeptembersEND/CVE--2026-24061

A docker image for CVE-2026-24061 in InetUtils telnetd.

Dockerfile

Updated: 1 week ago
0 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : Feb. 2, 2026, 6:36 p.m. This repo has been linked 1 different CVEs too.
Profile Photo
franckferman/CVE_2026_24061_PoC

Native Python Exploit & Mass Scanner for CVE-2026-24061 (GNU InetUtils Telnetd). Bypasses authentication via NEW-ENVIRON injection (USER=-f root) to get immediate root shell. Features parallel scanning (CIDR support) and robust result logging.

cve-2026-24061 telnet-exploit

Python

Updated: 1 week ago
1 stars 0 fork 0 watcher
Born at : Feb. 2, 2026, 10:30 a.m. This repo has been linked 1 different CVEs too.

Results are limited to the first 15 repositories due to potential performance issues.

The following list is the news that have been mention CVE-2026-24061 vulnerability anywhere in the article.

  • Daily CyberSecurity
Root via Telnet: Why You Must Patch Your Synology NAS Against This Decade-Old Ghost

On January 29, 2026, Synology, a preeminent manufacturer of Network Attached Storage (NAS) solutions, disseminated a series of critical firmware updates for its DiskStation Manager (DSM) operating sys ... Read more

Published Date: Feb 03, 2026 (1 week ago)
  • TheCyberThrone
CISA KEV Catalog Update – 5 Vulnerabilities Added

January 27, 20261) CVE-2018-14634 – Linux Kernel Integer Overflow (Local Privilege Escalation)Type: Integer overflow in the Linux kernel’s create_elf_tables() function.Impact: A local, unprivileged us ... Read more

Published Date: Jan 27, 2026 (2 weeks ago)
  • BleepingComputer
Nearly 800,000 Telnet servers exposed to remote attacks

Internet security watchdog Shadowserver tracks nearly 800,000 IP addresses with Telnet fingerprints amid ongoing attacks exploiting a critical authentication bypass vulnerability in the GNU InetUtils ... Read more

Published Date: Jan 26, 2026 (2 weeks ago)
  • CybersecurityNews
800K+ GNU InetUtils telnetd Instances Exposed to RCE Attacks – PoC Released

A critical authentication bypass vulnerability in the telnetd component of GNU Inetutils has exposed approximately 800,000 internet-accessible Telnet instances to unauthenticated remote code execution ... Read more

Published Date: Jan 26, 2026 (2 weeks ago)
  • security.nl
Aanvallers maken actief misbruik van kritieke telnet-kwetsbaarheid

Aanvallers maken actief misbruik van een kritieke telnet-kwetsbaarheid voor het aanvallen van systemen, zo melden de Italiaanse autoriteiten en securitybedrijf GreyNoise. Het beveiligingslek is aanwez ... Read more

Published Date: Jan 26, 2026 (2 weeks, 1 day ago)
  • CybersecurityNews
Hackers Exploiting telnetd Vulnerability for Root Access – Public PoC Released

Active exploitation of a critical authentication bypass vulnerability in the GNU InetUtils telnetd server (CVE-2026-24061) has been observed in the wild, allowing unauthenticated attackers to gain roo ... Read more

Published Date: Jan 24, 2026 (2 weeks, 3 days ago)
  • BleepingComputer
Hackers exploit critical telnetd auth bypass flaw to get root

A coordinated campaign has been observed targeting a recently disclosed critical-severity vulnerability that has been present in the GNU InetUtils telnetd server for 11 years. The security issue is tr ... Read more

Published Date: Jan 23, 2026 (2 weeks, 3 days ago)
  • The Hacker News
Critical GNU InetUtils telnetd Flaw Lets Attackers Bypass Login and Gain Root Access

A critical security flaw has been disclosed in the GNU InetUtils telnet daemon (telnetd) that went unnoticed for nearly 11 years. The vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2026-24061, is rated 9.8 out of 10.0 ... Read more

Published Date: Jan 22, 2026 (2 weeks, 4 days ago)
  • security.nl
NCSC verwacht misbruik van kritiek lek bij publiek toegankelijke telnet-servers

Het Nationaal Cyber Security Centrum (NCSC) verwacht dat aanvallers op korte termijn misbruik zullen maken van een kritieke kwetsbaarheid om publiek toegankelijke telnet-servers aan te vallen. Het bev ... Read more

Published Date: Jan 22, 2026 (2 weeks, 5 days ago)
  • The Register
Ancient telnet bug happily hands out root to attackers

A recently disclosed critical vulnerability in the GNU InetUtils telnet daemon (telnetd) is "trivial" to exploit, experts say. The bug, which had gone unnoticed for nearly 11 years, was disclosed on J ... Read more

Published Date: Jan 22, 2026 (2 weeks, 5 days ago)

Results are limited to the first 20 news articles due to potential performance issues.

The following table lists the changes that have been made to the CVE-2026-24061 vulnerability over time.

Vulnerability history details can be useful for understanding the evolution of a vulnerability, and for identifying the most recent changes that may impact the vulnerability's severity, exploitability, or other characteristics.

  • Modified Analysis by [email protected]

    Jan. 30, 2026

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added Reference Type MITRE: https://codeberg.org/inetutils/inetutils/commit/ccba9f748aa8d50a38d7748e2e60362edd6a32cc Types: Patch
    Added Reference Type MITRE: https://codeberg.org/inetutils/inetutils/commit/fd702c02497b2f398e739e3119bed0b23dd7aa7b Types: Patch
    Added Reference Type MITRE: https://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/bug-inetutils/2026-01/msg00004.html Types: Mitigation, Vendor Advisory
  • CVE Modified by [email protected]

    Jan. 29, 2026

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added Reference https://codeberg.org/inetutils/inetutils/commit/ccba9f748aa8d50a38d7748e2e60362edd6a32cc
    Added Reference https://codeberg.org/inetutils/inetutils/commit/fd702c02497b2f398e739e3119bed0b23dd7aa7b
    Added Reference https://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/bug-inetutils/2026-01/msg00004.html
  • Initial Analysis by [email protected]

    Jan. 27, 2026

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added CPE Configuration OR *cpe:2.3:a:gnu:inetutils:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions from (including) 1.9.3 up to (including) 2.7
    Added CPE Configuration OR *cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:11.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    Added Reference Type MITRE: https://www.gnu.org/software/inetutils/ Types: Product
    Added Reference Type MITRE: https://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2026/01/20/2 Types: Mailing List
    Added Reference Type MITRE: https://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2026/01/20/8 Types: Mailing List
    Added Reference Type CISA-ADP: https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2026-24061 Types: US Government Resource
    Added Reference Type CISA-ADP: https://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2026/01/20/2#:~:[email protected]%3A~%20USER=' Types: Mailing List, Third Party Advisory
    Added Reference Type CISA-ADP: https://www.labs.greynoise.io/grimoire/2026-01-22-f-around-and-find-out-18-hours-of-unsolicited-houseguests/index.html Types: Exploit, Third Party Advisory
    Added Reference Type CVE: http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2026/01/22/1 Types: Mailing List
    Added Reference Type CVE: https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2026/01/msg00025.html Types: Mailing List, Third Party Advisory
  • CVE Modified by 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0

    Jan. 26, 2026

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added Reference https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2026-24061
    Added Reference https://www.labs.greynoise.io/grimoire/2026-01-22-f-around-and-find-out-18-hours-of-unsolicited-houseguests/index.html
  • CVE Modified by af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108

    Jan. 25, 2026

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added Reference https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2026/01/msg00025.html
  • CVE Modified by 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0

    Jan. 22, 2026

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added Reference https://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2026/01/20/2#:~:[email protected]%3A~%20USER='
  • CVE Modified by af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108

    Jan. 22, 2026

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added Reference http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2026/01/22/1
  • New CVE Received by [email protected]

    Jan. 21, 2026

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added Description telnetd in GNU Inetutils through 2.7 allows remote authentication bypass via a "-f root" value for the USER environment variable.
    Added CVSS V3.1 AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
    Added CWE CWE-88
    Added Reference https://www.gnu.org/software/inetutils/
    Added Reference https://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2026/01/20/2
    Added Reference https://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2026/01/20/8
EPSS is a daily estimate of the probability of exploitation activity being observed over the next 30 days. Following chart shows the EPSS score history of the vulnerability.
Vulnerability Scoring Details
Base CVSS Score: 9.8
Attack Vector
Attack Complexity
Privileges Required
User Interaction
Scope
Confidentiality Impact
Integrity Impact
Availability Impact