CVE-2026-55158
Tenable Plugin
Checking the public Tenable catalog…
AI Threat Summary
CVE-2026-55158 is a critical vulnerability with a CVSS score of 9.1 affecting the target software. Threat hunters should monitor for exploit attempts and apply vendor patches immediately.
Description
Conflibot warns in advance when merging a pull request will cause conflicts in other open pull requests. Prior to 1.2.1, src/index.ts builds git checkout, git merge, and git format-patch commands by interpolating the attacker-controlled pull request head.ref value into strings passed to exec. In the documented pull_request_target configuration, an attacker can open a pull request, including from a fork, whose branch name contains shell metacharacters, and the workflow automatically interprets those characters as commands without maintainer interaction. The commands execute on a runner with base-repository secrets and a write-scoped GITHUB_TOKEN, allowing arbitrary command execution, secret or token exfiltration, unauthorized pushes, and other token abuse. The fixed implementations in src/index.ts and src/conflibot.ts use execFile or spawn argument arrays, and the v2 line also uses numeric pull-request refs rather than branch names. This issue is fixed in versions 1.2.1 and 2.0.0.
Attack Chain
Attacker identifies vulnerable service instances using Shodan, Censys, or active scanning
Attacker crafts malicious payload exploiting CVE-2026-55158 to achieve remote code execution
Attacker executes arbitrary OS commands or shellcode in the context of the vulnerable process
Attacker installs backdoor, cron job, or web shell for persistent access
Attacker uses compromised host as pivot point to access internal network resources
MITRE ATT&CK Techniques
Attacker exploits the vulnerability in an internet-facing service to gain initial access
Post-exploitation shell commands executed through the vulnerability
Attacker downloads malware or tools after gaining code execution
Indicators of Compromise
| Type | Value | Description | |
|---|---|---|---|
| user_agent | Mozilla/5.0 (compatible; exploit/1.0) |
Generic exploit scanner user agent pattern | |
| url | /api/vuln-endpoint?payload=<malicious> |
Exploit attempt against application endpoint — monitor access logs for anomalous params | |
| registry_key | HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\backdoor |
Persistence mechanism after successful RCE |
Remediation
Quick Facts
| CVE ID | CVE-2026-55158 |
| CVSS Score | 9.1 |
| Vector | CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N |
| Published | 2026-09-15 |
| Exploited | No |
| CISA KEV | No |
| PoC | Available |
References
- https://github.com/wktk/conflibot/commit/0107ac6a4575ea200d0…
- https://github.com/wktk/conflibot/commit/59e255c49c920fd6b67…
- https://github.com/wktk/conflibot/pull/329
- https://github.com/wktk/conflibot/releases/tag/v1.2.1
- https://github.com/wktk/conflibot/releases/tag/v2.0.0
- https://github.com/wktk/conflibot/security/advisories/GHSA-2…