Description
Flatpak is a system for building, distributing, and running sandboxed desktop applications on Linux. Prior to version 1.18.1, on systems where at least one OCI remote is configured (most common on Fedora systems), a malicious local user in an active local session could use a crafted architecture name to trick the `flatpak-system-helper` process into creating a root-owned directory tree with contents determined by the OCI remote, plus a root-owned `lock` file and `icons` directory, outside the intended root directory. If this vulnerability is combined with other vulnerabilities also fixed in 1.18.1, the combination can lead to local root privilege escalation. This particular vulnerability is not believed to be exploitable if there are no OCI remotes configured (common on non-Fedora systems). Version 1.18.1 patches the issue.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected | Fixed |
|---|---|---|---|
| flatpak | flatpak | < 1.18.1 | — |
Fixed in Linux distributions
Distributions backport fixes, so the version that fixes this vulnerability differs per release — upgrade to at least the version shown. From the distributions' security trackers and advisories.
Debian
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debian 14 | flatpak | 1.18.1-1 | — |
| Debian 13 | flatpak | 1.16.6-1~deb13u3 | — |
| Debian 12 | flatpak | No fix yet | — |
Ubuntu
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu 26.04 LTS | flatpak | No fix yet | — |
Show 4 more (older releases, extended support, other products)Fewer releases
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu Pro 24.04 LTS | flatpak | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu Pro 22.04 LTS | flatpak | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu Pro 20.04 LTS | flatpak | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu Pro 18.04 LTS | flatpak | No fix yet | — |
SUSE
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| SLES 15 SP7 | flatpak | 1.16.6-150600.3.12.1 | SUSE-SU-2026:4944-1 |
| SLES 15 SP6 | flatpak | 1.16.6-150600.3.12.1 | SUSE-SU-2026:4944-1 |
| SLES 15 SP5 | flatpak | 1.16.6-150500.3.21.1 | SUSE-SU-2026:5127-1 |
| SLES 12 SP5 | flatpak | 1.4.2-3.15.1 | SUSE-SU-2026:4610-1 |
Show 3 more (older releases, extended support, other products)Fewer releases
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| SLES for SAP 15 SP6 | flatpak | 1.16.6-150600.3.12.1 | SUSE-SU-2026:4944-1 |
| SLES for SAP 15 SP5 | flatpak | 1.16.6-150500.3.21.1 | SUSE-SU-2026:5127-1 |
| SLE HPC 15 SP5 | flatpak | 1.16.6-150500.3.21.1 | SUSE-SU-2026:5127-1 |
Public exploits
Exploit or proof-of-concept code for this vulnerability is publicly available, which lowers the bar for attackers. Treat it as a reason to patch sooner.
GitHub 1 repository
-
0xSemizzz/CVE-2026-92162 ★ 1 · Sep 3, 2026
CVE-2026-92162: Path traversal in the Flatpak system helper: an unvalidated arch parameter in DeployAppstream lets an active local user create root-owned directories anywhere. Write-up and test-mode …
Sources: PoC-in-GitHub, Metasploit Framework, Exploit-DB — updated daily. Only links are listed; no exploit code is hosted here.
Advisories 3
- SUSE-SU-2026:5127-1 Security update for flatpak SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Nov 7, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2026:4944-1 Security update for flatpak SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Oct 31, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2026:4610-1 Security update for flatpak SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Oct 10, 2026
References
- https://github.com/flatpak/flatpak/security/advisories/GHSA-v2gw-v9h5-9q4x
- https://github.com/flatpak/flatpak/pull/6768
- https://github.com/flatpak/flatpak/commit/01773f84021dd090b2426f79675f94f2564f9279
- https://github.com/flatpak/flatpak/commit/19456b916842b079af833a86b9ab89c5db154b92
- https://github.com/flatpak/flatpak/commit/aeb369a2723506fabc1f701ef7a0dc6c97c4b983