Medium File handling

CVE-2026-54055 — Kitty has an Arbitrary File Write via Symlink Race Condition in File Transmission Protocol

Kitty is a cross-platform GPU based terminal. In versions prior to 0.47.2, a local privilege escalation vulnerability exists in kitty's file transmission protocol where a child process running in the terminal can write to arbitrary files on the filesystem by exploiting a TOCTOU (Time-of-Check-Time-of-Use) race condition between symlink validation and file creation. The `os.open()` call used to create files does not use `O_NOFOLLOW`, allowing an attacker to create a symlink between the initial stat check and the actual file open, causing the write to follow the symlink to an arbitrary destination. Version 0.47.2 fixes the issue.

Published Jun 12, 2026 · Updated Oct 13, 2026 · Sources: NIST National Vulnerability Database, CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP · CNA: GitHub_M

Low

Who exploits it and how urgent it is

A 0–100 score combining confirmed exploitation, ransomware and APT use, public exploits, EPSS and severity.

No exploitation signal in the sources consulted so far.

How the score was calculated

EPSS 0.1% (30-day exploitation probability)+0
Technical severity (medium)+3
CISA SSVC: exploitation "poc"+5

The score orders the patch queue; it does not replace your asset context (internet exposure, criticality, compensating controls).

Triage

Is it exploited, how likely is exploitation, what does it touch, and how severe do the sources call it.

Exploitation

Not confirmed

Not in CISA KEV — an absence of record, not proof it is unexploited.

EPSS FIRST

0.1%

ahead of 1% of scored CVEs · Oct 14, 2026

Affects

Kovidgoyal

Kitty

CVSS base

5.0

Medium · 2 source(s)

CISA SSVC assessment CISA

Three decision points CISA publishes for the CVEs it assesses (SSVC 2.0.3). A stakeholder decision, not a severity score.

Exploitation

Proof of concept

none · proof-of-concept · active

Automatable

can an attacker script the kill-chain steps

Technical impact

Partial

partial · total control of the vulnerable component

Remediation

Fixes and mitigations documented by the sources — linked to the original advisory.

Documented mitigation — github.com (NIST National Vulnerability Database)

First 24 hours

Ordered from the record’s own fields — exposure first, because you cannot patch what you have not found. A rule-generated starting point.

Identify exposed assets running the affected vendor/product/version combinations (Kovidgoyal Kitty).
Apply the documented mitigations until a definitive fix is available.
Exploitation requires user interaction: tighten email/web filtering and warn affected users.
Search available logs for exploit probes matching the vulnerability class (file handling), errors and authentication anomalies.

Affected scope

Vendor, product and versions as the sources word them.

Vendor	Product	Versions	Status	Source
Kovidgoyal	Kitty	< 0.47.2	Vulnerable	NIST National Vulnerability Database
Kovidgoyal	Kitty	version < 0.47.2	Vulnerable	CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP

Attack characteristics

The CVSS vector, decoded. It describes the attack, not your exposure to it.

Attack vector

Local

Attack complexity

High

Privileges required

Low

User interaction

Required

Scope

Unchanged

Confidentiality

None

Integrity

High

Availability

Low

Every base score collected

Sources score independently and may disagree; each row says who scored it and under which version.

Score	Version	Severity	Expl.	Impact	Scored by
5.0	CVSS 3.1	Medium	0.8	4.2	security-advisories@github.com via NIST National Vulnerability Database
5.0	CVSS 3.1	Medium	—	—	GitHub_M via CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:L (score shown at the top: security-advisories@github.com)

Weakness MITRE

Weakness class according to MITRE’s CWE catalog.

CWE-59 · Link Following

Other CVEs with this weakness →

EPSS over time FIRST

Oct 13, 2026 → Oct 14, 2026 · 2 reading(s) · max 0.10%

Detection

Read off the CVSS vector and the weakness class. Starting points, not tested rules.

Local/physical vector: focus on endpoint telemetry (EDR) from affected hosts.
Monitor file creation in web directories and paths with traversal sequences (../).

endpoint telemetry (EDR)file integrity (FIM)

Timeline

What happened to this CVE, newest first.

2026
Affected products added · kovidgoyal/kitty
Oct 13, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
SSVC assessment updated
Oct 13, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Record published
Oct 13, 2026
Fix documented
Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
CVSS changed · 5.0
Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
Source status changed · → Analyzed
Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
Record created in this database
Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
CVE published
Jun 12, 2026 · GitHub_M

Source activity

Repeated readings are counted rather than listed.

1× Official description updated · Oct 13, 2026 – Oct 13, 2026

References

1 on the record

github.com/kovidgoyal/kitty/security/advisories/GHSA-q446-x7q6-vcxh
Mitigation, Vendor Advisory, x_refsource_CONFIRM, NIST National Vulnerability Database

Elsewhere on this site

Kovidgoyal
every CVE for this vendor

File handling
same class

CWE-59
other pages naming this weakness

Related CVEs (same products)

High CVE-2026-54056 Kitty has an arbitrary file overwrite via symlink following in `kitten dnd` remote drop staging Jun 12, 2026
High CVE-2026-54057 Kitty vulnerable to command injection via unsanitized OSC 21 query reply Jun 12, 2026
High CVE-2026-42850 Kitty has a shell command injection Jun 12, 2026
High CVE-2026-42851 @kitty-edit DCS + --color=geninclude vulnerable to Unauthenticated in-process RCE Jun 12, 2026
Critical CVE-2026-33642 Kitty has a Heap Buffer Over-Read/Write via Integer Overflow in compose_rectangles Bounds Check May 19, 2026
High CVE-2026-33633 Kitty has a Heap Buffer Overflow in its Graphics Protocol Handler May 19, 2026

Not in any source we poll

Listed rather than left blank: an empty field and an unmeasured one look identical on screen, and only one is a reason to look elsewhere.

No confirmed IOCs, IP addresses, domains, file hashes, or malware artifacts supplied.
No organization-specific asset inventory, compensating-control status, or patch deployment evidence supplied.
No exploit packet captures, log samples, or incident case IDs supplied.

Answered from this record

Text assembled only from the fields above — no additional claims.

What should defenders know first?

CVE-2026-54055 is "Kitty has an Arbitrary File Write via Symlink Race Condition in File Transmission Protocol", rated Medium. It affects Kitty (Kovidgoyal); versions are in the scope table. It is not in CISA KEV, which does not rule out exploitation. CVSS 5.0 describes technical severity. EPSS 0.10% estimates the probability of exploitation in 30 days; neither replaces your asset context. First verify whether exposed or business-critical assets run the affected versions, apply vendor fixes or mitigations, and preserve logs for review.

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