Local File Read via systemd-homed in accountsservice
CVE-2026-16743 Published on July 24, 2026

Accountsservice: accountsservice: arbitrary file read via seticonfile for systemd-homed users
A flaw was found in accountsservice. The systemd-homed code path for SetIconFile opens a user-supplied filename as root without the validation and privilege drop performed by the classic handler. A local attacker with a systemd-homed-managed account can read arbitrary files accessible to the accounts-daemon process.

NVD

Vulnerability Analysis

CVE-2026-16743 can be exploited with local system access, and requires small amount of user privileges. This vulnerability is considered to have a low attack complexity. Public availability of a proof of concept (POC) exploit exists for CVE-2026-16743. The potential impact of an exploit of this vulnerability is considered to have a high impact on confidentiality, with no impact on integrity and availability.

Attack Vector:
LOCAL
Attack Complexity:
LOW
Privileges Required:
LOW
User Interaction:
NONE
Scope:
UNCHANGED
Confidentiality Impact:
HIGH
Integrity Impact:
NONE
Availability Impact:
NONE

Timeline

Reported to Red Hat.

Made public.

Weakness Type

Improper Privilege Management

The software does not properly assign, modify, track, or check privileges for an actor, creating an unintended sphere of control for that actor.


Products Associated with CVE-2026-16743

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Affected Versions

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10: Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7: Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8: Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9: