Cyber Resilience

CVE-2026-34982

Command Injection in Vim ≤ 9.2.0276

Published
06 April 2026
Modified
15 July 2026
Patch / advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 8.2
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N
EPSS Score 0.0047 38th percentile
Risk Priority 58 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2026-34982 is a high-severity OS Command Injection (CWE-78) vulnerability in Vim Vim. Its CVSS base score is 8.2 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Command and Scripting Interpreter (T1059); ranked at the 38th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to SA-11 (Developer Testing and Evaluation) and SI-10 (Information Input Validation) — see the control section below for these in your framework.

Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary

Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.

CVE-2026-34982 is a modeline sandbox bypass vulnerability in Vim, an open source command line text editor. Versions prior to 9.2.0276 are affected, allowing arbitrary OS command execution when a user opens a crafted file. The vulnerability stems from the `complete`, `guitabtooltip`, and `printheader` options missing the `P_MLE` flag, which permits modeline execution, and the `mapset()` function lacking a `check_secure()` call, enabling abuse from sandboxed expressions. It is classified under CWE-78 (OS Command Injection) with a CVSS v3.1 base score of 8.2 (AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N) and was published on 2026-04-06.

The attack requires an attacker to deliver a specially crafted file to a victim, who must then open it using a vulnerable Vim instance. Exploitation demands local access vector, low attack complexity, no privileges, and user interaction, but achieves changed scope with high impacts to confidentiality and integrity. Successful exploitation grants the attacker arbitrary operating system command execution in the context of the Vim process.

Mitigation is provided by updating to Vim version 9.2.0276 or later, which includes the fixing commit 75661a66a1db1e1f3f1245c615. Further details on the patch and vulnerability are documented in the GitHub security advisory GHSA-8h6p-m6gr-mpw9, the release notes for v9.2.0276, and the oss-security mailing list announcement from 2026-04-01.

OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

Vim is an open source, command line text editor. Prior to version 9.2.0276, a modeline sandbox bypass in Vim allows arbitrary OS command execution when a user opens a crafted file. The `complete`, `guitabtooltip` and `printheader` options are missing the…

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`P_MLE` flag, allowing a modeline to be executed. Additionally, the `mapset()` function lacks a `check_secure()` call, allowing it to be abused from sandboxed expressions. Commit 9.2.0276 fixes the issue.

CWE(s)

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1059 Command and Scripting Interpreter Execution
Adversaries may abuse command and script interpreters to execute commands, scripts, or binaries.
T1059.003 Windows Command Shell Execution
Adversaries may abuse the Windows command shell for execution.
T1059.004 Unix Shell Execution
Adversaries may abuse Unix shell commands and scripts for execution.
T1059.001 PowerShell Execution
Adversaries may abuse PowerShell commands and scripts for execution.
T1190 Exploit Public-Facing Application Initial Access
Adversaries may attempt to exploit a weakness in an Internet-facing host or system to initially access a network.
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2026-44656Same product: Vim Vim
CVE-2026-41411Same product: Vim Vim
CVE-2026-33412Same product: Vim Vim
CVE-2026-42307Same product: Vim Vim
CVE-2026-46483Same product: Vim Vim
CVE-2026-34714Same product: Vim Vim
CVE-2026-28417Same product: Vim Vim
CVE-2026-55895Same product: Vim Vim
CVE-2026-57453Same product: Vim Vim
CVE-2026-39881Same product: Vim Vim

Affected Assets

vim
vim
≤ 9.2.0276

Mitigating Controls

Control response

Prevent
Stop it (NIST 800-53)

Detect
Catch it (NIST detect / respond)

Harden
Shrink the surface (DISA STIG)

Validate
Prove the fix (OWASP ASVS)
  • V1.2.5
  • V1.2.8
  • V15.2.5

Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI

Developer testing and evaluation can discover missing or incorrect command sanitization during development.

Input validation directly neutralizes or rejects special characters that would otherwise alter OS command structure.

Least privilege reduces the permissions available to any process that could be subverted by injected commands.

Least functionality restricts available OS commands and interpreters, limiting the blast radius of injection.

Secure engineering principles require proper neutralization of untrusted input before command construction.

Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

PR.PS-06 mostly match
prevents

PR.PS-06's SDLC practices directly require secure coding and input handling that blocks command-injection defects, yet the single broad outcome leaves many specific neutralization vectors and verification gaps unaddressed.

PR.PS-02 partial match
prevents

Routine patching/maintenance can remediate known command-injection CVEs in dependencies (partial forward) but does nothing to stop developers from introducing improper neutralization in custom code (none reverse).

Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

finds

Security testing and code review target insecure use of operating-system command interfaces, catching command-injection flaws introduced during development.

References