Cyber Resilience

CVE-2026-48158

RCE

Published
10 August 2026
Modified
09 September 2026
CVSS Score v4 9.3
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X
EPSS Score 0.0040 33th percentile
Risk Priority 45 floored blend · peak EPSS

CVSS and EPSS are reproduced from their sources (NVD, FIRST EPSS). Risk Priority is our own derived reading, not an NVD score.

Summary

CVE-2026-48158 is a critical-severity Embedded Malicious Code (CWE-506) vulnerability. Its CVSS base score is 9.3 (Critical).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Embedded Payloads (T1027.009); ranked at the 33th 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 SC-44 (Detonation Chambers) — see the control section below for these in your framework.

OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

use-context-selector is a React useContextSelector hook in userland Between 2026-05-18 15:57:18 and 2026-05-19 15:24:34, the default branch contained malicious commits 9d8481a513b7b0d1c0941b220c69b25de748641b through 6f2dae054ca014068bdbbb4db96006424d674124 that executed remote attacker-controlled code on developer machines during `npm install`. The commits were removed by force-push,…

more

but local clones, forks, and direct-SHA URLs may still contain them, and `npm install` against an affected checkout will still execute the code today. The package was not published to npm. `src/install.js` was added and wired into the `postinstall` script. It fetched a JavaScript payload from an attacker-controlled HTTPS endpoint (configurable via an environment variable), disabled TLS verification, and evaluated the response as code with `require` available. Execution was deliberately skipped on CI and cloud/serverless environments, targeting developer workstations. The second-stage payload was attacker-hosted and cannot be reconstructed. Assume full compromise of anything reachable from a Node process with the user's permissions. Those who ran `npm install` against an affected checkout on a developer machine on or after 2026-05-18 15:57:18 should treat the machine as compromised, rotate every credential the machine could reach, audit account activity** since 2026-05-18 15:57:18, and clean local clones.

CWE(s)

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1027.009 Embedded Payloads Stealth
Adversaries may embed payloads within other files to conceal malicious content from defenses.
T1195.002 Compromise Software Supply Chain Initial Access
Adversaries may manipulate application software prior to receipt by a final consumer for the purpose of data or system compromise.
T1195 Supply Chain Compromise Initial Access
Adversaries may manipulate products or product delivery mechanisms prior to receipt by a final consumer for the purpose of data or system compromise.
T1195.001 Compromise Software Dependencies and Development Tools Initial Access
Adversaries may manipulate software dependencies and development tools prior to receipt by a final consumer for the purpose of data or system compromise.
T1218.001 Compiled HTML File Stealth
Adversaries may abuse Compiled HTML files (.
T1221 Template Injection Stealth
Adversaries may create or modify references in user document templates to conceal malicious code or force authentication attempts.
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2026-48160Shared CWE-506
CVE-2026-77649Shared CWE-506
CVE-2025-59145Shared CWE-506
CVE-2025-54313Shared CWE-506
CVE-2025-59143Shared CWE-506
CVE-2026-46412Shared CWE-506
CVE-2025-10894Shared CWE-506
CVE-2026-48027Shared CWE-506
CVE-2026-67595Shared CWE-506
CVE-2025-59039Shared CWE-506

Affected Assets

Mitigating Controls

Control response

Prevent
Stop it (NIST 800-53)

Detect
Catch it (NIST detect / respond)

Harden
Shrink the surface (DISA STIG)
  • 3 hardening rules · 2 OS baselines
Validate
Prove the fix (OWASP ASVS)

Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI

Developer testing and evaluation can discover embedded malicious code before release.

Detonation chambers can reveal embedded malicious code through controlled execution analysis.

Integrity verification tools directly detect unauthorized or malicious code insertions.

Tamper-resistance and detection mechanisms identify malicious code introduced via the supply chain.

Component authenticity requirements reduce the chance malicious code is embedded by developers or suppliers.

Component authenticity controls stop introduction of malicious or counterfeit code into the product.

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.

GV.SC-06 partial match
prevents

Due diligence prior to supplier relationships helps avoid sources of embedded malicious code.

GV.SC-07 partial match
prevents

Supplier risk assessment reduces likelihood of receiving products containing malicious code.

ID.RA-09 partial match
prevents

Assessing authenticity and integrity before acquisition catches embedded malicious code.

ID.RA-10 partial match
prevents

Pre-acquisition assessment of critical suppliers mitigates risk of malicious code in procured software.

PR.PS-06 partial match
prevents

Secure SDLC practices directly prevent introduction of malicious code during development.

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.

prevents

Requiring suppliers to furnish component lists, attestations, and cryptographic verification of delivered artefacts makes it harder for an attacker to embed hidden malicious code that would otherwise go undetected through the supply chain.

finds

Checks that executed code has not been tampered with and monitoring for malware-associated activity reduce the likelihood that hidden malicious code remains active.

Hardening callouts derived

Configuration rules from DISA STIG baselines that bear on weaknesses of the type cited by this CVE. Each rule is shown with the relationship its mapping actually records, against the CWE it was authored against. Derived via CVE→CWE over `controls_xwalks` (higher-evidence rows only; rows rated `none` are excluded).

Oracle Linux 9 (1 rule)
  • V-271452 OL 9 must use a Linux Security Module configured to enforce limits on system services. prevents CWE-506
RHEL 9 (1 rule)
  • V-258078 RHEL 9 must use a Linux Security Module configured to enforce limits on system services. prevents CWE-506

References