Vulnerability Description
Cursor is a code editor built for programming with AI. Prior to 3.0, Cursor runs agent terminal commands in a sandbox by default. Before a Write, the agent canonicalizes the target path to confirm it stays inside the workspace, but when canonicalization fails it falls back to the original path and writes without approval. A malicious agent can create an in-workspace symlink that points outside the workspace and force canonicalization to fail — either because the target does not exist or because read permission is removed from the path — so the agent writes through the symlink to an arbitrary location without approval. A malicious agent could write arbitrary files outside the workspace under the user's privileges. This enables non-sandboxed Remote Code Execution — for example by overwriting the cursorsandbox helper so later commands run unsandboxed — with no user interaction beyond a benign prompt. This vulnerability is fixed in 3.0.
CVSS Score
CRITICAL
Affected Products
| Vendor | Product | Versions |
|---|---|---|
| Anysphere | Cursor | < 3.0 |
Related Weaknesses (CWE)
References
FAQ
What is CVE-2026-50549?
CVE-2026-50549 is a vulnerability with a CVSS score of 9.8 (CRITICAL). Cursor is a code editor built for programming with AI. Prior to 3.0, Cursor runs agent terminal commands in a sandbox by default. Before a Write, the agent canonicalizes the target path to confirm it ...
How severe is CVE-2026-50549?
CVE-2026-50549 has been rated CRITICAL with a CVSS base score of 9.8/10. This is considered a critical vulnerability requiring immediate attention.
Is there a patch for CVE-2026-50549?
Check the references section above for vendor advisories and patch information. Affected products include: Anysphere Cursor.