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CVE-2026-85756NVD
Vulnerability Summary
## Summary
Default SCP remote-path handling places caller-supplied paths into the command that runs scp on the server. On a shell-based server that command is interpreted by a shell, so an attacker-influenced path that is not quoted to suit that shell can execute as a command as the authenticated SSH user. SSH.NET provides `ScpClient.RemotePathTransformation` to control escaping behaviour (defaulting to `RemotePathTransformation.DoubleQuote`) but cannot guarantee safety for arbitrary remote command interpreters. This is inherent to running scp over a remote shell (cf. CVE-2020-15778).
## Impact
Command execution on the SSH server as the authenticated SSH user, when an application passes an attacker-influenced remote path to ScpClient against a shell-based server.
Exploitation depends on conditions beyond the attacker's control: the remote server must be shell-based, and the attacker-influenced path must be crafted to defeat the quoting applied by the transformation in effect — that is, to use metacharacters that it does not neutralise (for example $(...) or backticks, which survive the default double-quoting on a POSIX shell). A path that does not meet these escaping rules, or a non-shell-based server, does not result in command execution.
## Remediation
The fixed release obsoletes the constructors that silently defaulted the path transformation and adds constructors that require an explicit `IRemotePathTransformation`, so callers are required to choose one that suits their server and trust environment. For POSIX shells, the library provides `RemotePathTransformation.ShellQuote`. The legacy default (`RemotePathTransformation.DoubleQuote`) is unchanged for backwards compatibility. SCP is considered legacy and SFTP, which does not involve a remote shell, is recommended where possible (via `SftpClient`).
Default SCP remote-path handling places caller-supplied paths into the command that runs scp on the server. On a shell-based server that command is interpreted by a shell, so an attacker-influenced path that is not quoted to suit that shell can execute as a command as the authenticated SSH user. SSH.NET provides `ScpClient.RemotePathTransformation` to control escaping behaviour (defaulting to `RemotePathTransformation.DoubleQuote`) but cannot guarantee safety for arbitrary remote command interpreters. This is inherent to running scp over a remote shell (cf. CVE-2020-15778).
## Impact
Command execution on the SSH server as the authenticated SSH user, when an application passes an attacker-influenced remote path to ScpClient against a shell-based server.
Exploitation depends on conditions beyond the attacker's control: the remote server must be shell-based, and the attacker-influenced path must be crafted to defeat the quoting applied by the transformation in effect — that is, to use metacharacters that it does not neutralise (for example $(...) or backticks, which survive the default double-quoting on a POSIX shell). A path that does not meet these escaping rules, or a non-shell-based server, does not result in command execution.
## Remediation
The fixed release obsoletes the constructors that silently defaulted the path transformation and adds constructors that require an explicit `IRemotePathTransformation`, so callers are required to choose one that suits their server and trust environment. For POSIX shells, the library provides `RemotePathTransformation.ShellQuote`. The legacy default (`RemotePathTransformation.DoubleQuote`) is unchanged for backwards compatibility. SCP is considered legacy and SFTP, which does not involve a remote shell, is recommended where possible (via `SftpClient`).
CVSS v3.1 Base Metrics — Score 7.5
Attack VectorNetwork
Attack ComplexityHigh
Privileges RequiredLow
User InteractionNone
ScopeUnchanged
ConfidentialityHigh
IntegrityHigh
AvailabilityHigh
Affected & Patched Versions
- SSH.NET < 2026.0.0
Not provided by Private for this CVE.
External References
- https://github.com/sshnet/SSH.NET/security/advisories/GHSA-mggc-4xg6-vcxf
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-85756
- https://github.com/sshnet/SSH.NET/commit/c66b9f8fb06c12e71761e58a577b1e796026310f
- https://github.com/sshnet/SSH.NET/releases/tag/2026.0.0
- https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-mggc-4xg6-vcxf