CVE-2026-41489 — HIGH (8.8)

Vulnerability Description

Pi-hole is a DNS sinkhole that protects devices from unwanted content without installing any client-side software. From 6.0 to before Core 6.4.2 and FTL 6.6.1, two shell scripts executed as root by systemd (pihole-FTL-prestart.sh and pihole-FTL-poststop.sh) read the files.pid path from this config without validation and use it in privileged file operations (install and rm -f). By writing an arbitrary path into files.pid, an attacker with pihole privilege can cause root to delete and then recreate any file on the system outside the ProtectSystem=full-restricted directories, gaining write access to it. On a default Pi-hole installation this yields local privilege escalation to root via SSH authorized keys manipulation. If /root/.ssh/authorized_keys does not exist (default on fresh installs), only ExecStartPre is required. If the file exists, ExecStopPost deletes it first, and the same restart triggers both hooks in sequence. This vulnerability is fixed in Core 6.4.2 and FTL 6.6.1.

CVSS Score

8.8

HIGH

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H

Attack Vector

LOCAL

Attack Complexity

LOW

Privileges Required

LOW

User Interaction

NONE

Scope

CHANGED

Confidentiality

HIGH

Integrity

HIGH

Availability

HIGH

Related Weaknesses (CWE)

CWE-732 CWE-269 CWE-15

References

FAQ

What is CVE-2026-41489?

CVE-2026-41489 is a vulnerability with a CVSS score of 8.8 (HIGH). Pi-hole is a DNS sinkhole that protects devices from unwanted content without installing any client-side software. From 6.0 to before Core 6.4.2 and FTL 6.6.1, two shell scripts executed as root by sy...

How severe is CVE-2026-41489?

CVE-2026-41489 has been rated HIGH with a CVSS base score of 8.8/10. Review the CVSS metrics above for detailed severity breakdown.

Is there a patch for CVE-2026-41489?

Check the references section above for vendor advisories and patch information. Review vendor security bulletins for remediation guidance.