Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
A user with limited OpenWrt LuCI access could bypass intended permissions in luci-app-lxc and potentially take full control of the device. Successful compromise could expose traffic, configurations, credentials, and network availability. The attack requires an authenticated low-privileged account, but no user interaction and low attack complexity are reported.
Executive priority
Prioritize immediate identification and containment of affected devices, especially internet-reachable or multi-user administration systems. Root compromise could undermine the router and connected network. Because version and fix details are absent from the supplied record, require teams to confirm remediation directly against the OpenWrt advisory and document residual exposure.
Technical view
An ACL inconsistency exposes backend container-management routes to insufficiently privileged LuCI users. Encoded path traversal in the lxc_name parameter can escape expected container directories and influence host-side scripts executed by lxc.hook.start-host, resulting in root code execution. The supplied CVSS 3.1 score is 9.9, with network access, low complexity, low privileges, and changed scope.
Likely exposure
Exposure is limited to OpenWrt systems running luci-app-lxc where low-privileged authenticated LuCI users can reach affected management functionality. Network-accessible LuCI interfaces increase opportunity. The supplied sources identify LuCI as affected but provide no affected or fixed version range, so package-level exposure requires confirmation against current vendor guidance.
Exploitation context
The described chain can turn limited authenticated access into root control of the OpenWrt host. The supplied record does not indicate CISA KEV inclusion, and the provided evidence does not establish active exploitation in the wild. Treat it as highly consequential but avoid claiming observed exploitation without additional evidence.
Researcher notes
CWE-73 is consistent with externally influenced path or filename handling. The authorization bypass and traversal appear chained: insufficient ACL enforcement provides backend access, while manipulated container naming reaches host-side execution. Exact affected releases, patch commits, detection indicators, and public exploit availability are not established in the supplied evidence.
Mitigation direction
- Check the OpenWrt advisory for affected and fixed package versions, then apply vendor-specified updates promptly.
- Restrict LuCI access to trusted administrative networks and authenticated administrators.
- Disable or remove luci-app-lxc if it is not operationally required, following normal change controls.
- Review and reduce low-privileged LuCI accounts until remediation is verified.
- Preserve relevant logs and configurations before remediation if compromise is suspected.
Validation and detection
- Inventory OpenWrt devices and confirm whether luci-app-lxc is installed and enabled.
- Compare installed LuCI packages with the affected and fixed versions documented by OpenWrt.
- Identify low-privileged LuCI accounts and determine whether they can reach container-management functionality.
- Verify LuCI is not reachable from untrusted networks unless explicitly required.
- Review container names, hook configuration, host-side scripts, and logs for unexplained changes.
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-73: File access and web shell behavior lookup
File traversal and upload weaknesses can lead teams to review file, web shell, execution, and collection telemetry. 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 lookupContainer behavior lookup
The affected technology mentions containers, so container-specific ATT&CK technique review may help. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2026-72842 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
- 9.9 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/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
2 official scoresWe 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:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H3.16VulnCheckCVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:H/SI:H/SA:H——VulnCheckVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 4.0 score
9.4CriticalVector: CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:H/SI:H/SA:H
Base CVSS 3.1 score
9.9CriticalVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/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
- GitHub Security Advisory (GHSA-jf59-v86x-fwf2)CVE reference, VulnCheck · vendor-advisory
- VulnCheck Advisory: OpenWrt luci-app-lxc ACL Inconsistency Authentication BypassCVE reference, VulnCheck · third-party-advisory
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.
External Control of File Name or Path
External Control of File Name or Path represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.