Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
Pheditor versions 2.0.1 through 2.0.5 ship with a known default administrator password and do not require it to be changed. An unauthenticated attacker who reaches an unchanged deployment could control its file-management and terminal capabilities, potentially taking over the application and underlying server.
Executive priority
Prioritize immediate remediation for internet-facing or broadly reachable instances. The vulnerable capabilities permit complete application and possible server compromise. Upgrade promptly, restrict access during remediation, and investigate any affected deployment that retained the default credential.
Technical view
CVE-2026-55579 is a CWE-798 hardcoded-credential vulnerability rated CVSS 3.1 9.8. The default administrator credential can provide file read, file write, upload, and terminal access without prior privileges or user interaction, enabling remote code execution. Version 2.0.6 contains the patch.
Likely exposure
Highest risk applies to network-accessible Pheditor 2.0.1–2.0.5 deployments still using the shipped default credential. Internal deployments remain exposed to attackers with network access. Deployments outside the stated version range or not using the default credential are not established as vulnerable by the supplied sources.
Exploitation context
The weakness is remotely reachable, low complexity, requires no prior privileges, and needs no user interaction. However, the supplied record is not in KEV and provides no evidence of active exploitation. Treat exposed, default-configured instances as readily compromisable without claiming observed exploitation.
Researcher notes
The advisory identifies a SHA-512 password hash at pheditor.php line 11 and describes full editor, upload, and terminal access. The supplied evidence supports confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact, but does not establish exploitation in the wild, affected downstream products, or compromise prevalence.
Mitigation direction
- Upgrade Pheditor to version 2.0.6 or later.
- Restrict network access to Pheditor until the upgrade is completed.
- Replace any default credentials according to the vendor's supported procedure.
- Review the vendor advisory for additional remediation guidance.
- Investigate potentially exposed instances for signs of compromise.
Validation and detection
- Inventory Pheditor deployments and confirm their installed versions.
- Identify deployments running versions 2.0.1 through 2.0.5.
- Safely verify whether the shipped default credential configuration remains present.
- Confirm upgraded instances report version 2.0.6 or later.
- Review access, file-change, upload, and terminal activity for anomalies.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CWE-798: Credential and account abuse lookup
Authentication and credential weaknesses can make valid-account abuse and credential telemetry useful review starting points. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupExecution behavior lookup
The CVE wording references code or command execution, so execution technique review may help defensive triage. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCredential and access behavior lookup
The CVE wording references authentication or credential exposure, so valid-account and credential-access review may help. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupFile access behavior lookup
The CVE wording references file access or upload behavior, so file telemetry and web shell review may help. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2026-55579 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- Critical
- CVSS
- 9.8 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
SSVC decision data
CVSS vector scores
1 official scoreWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H3.95.9GitHub_MVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
9.8CriticalVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Vulnerability timeline
Timeline events are normalized from CVE metadata, CNA source timelines, ADP timelines, and KEV metadata when present.
- CVE reservedCVE Program
The CVE ID was reserved by the assigning CNA.
- CVE publishedCVE Program
The CVE record was published.
- CVE updatedCVE Program
The CVE record metadata indicates this as the latest update time.
ADP provider summaries
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://github.com/pheditor/pheditor/security/advisories/GHSA-p4h7-p9rj-2pq2CVE reference, GitHub_M · x_refsource_CONFIRM
- https://github.com/pheditor/pheditor/releases/tag/2.0.6CVE reference, GitHub_M · x_refsource_MISC
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.
Use of Hard-coded Credentials
Use of Hard-coded Credentials represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.