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Command InjectionWeakness · CWE-77

CVE-2026-46529

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-06-10
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
81/100
Remediation priority · High
No privileges

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
Atril Document Viewer is the default document reader of the MATE desktop environment for Linux. A single-click remote code execution vulnerability in versions prior to 1.26.3 and 1.28.4 allows an attacker to achieve arbitrary code execution as the user by tricking them into clicking a link inside a malicious PDF document. The PDF can be packaged as a polyglot file that is simultaneously a valid PDF and a valid ELF shared library, making the attack a single-file, single-click, configuration-independent RCE on stock atril installations. The root cause is `shell/ev-application.c:ev_spawn`, which builds a command line from attacker-controlled PDF link-destination fields without applying `g_shell_quote`. The cmdline is then handed to `g_app_info_create_from_commandline`, which shell-parses it back into argv — splitting any embedded `--gtk-module=PATH` into a separate argv element. GTK then `dlopen()`s the path during init, running any `__attribute__((constructor))` it finds. Versions 1.26.3 and 1.28.4 contain a patch for the issue. This is the same defect class as CVE-2023-51698 (CBT `--checkpoint-action` injection in `comics-document.c`, fixed in 1.6.2) but in a different code path (`shell/ev-application.c`) that the original patch did not touch.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

Atril Document Viewer versions before 1.26.3 and 1.28.4 contain an RCE vulnerability where the ev_spawn function in shell/ev-application.c builds a command line from attacker-controlled PDF link-destination fields without proper argument quoting. This allows injection of --gtk-module=PATH arguments that GTK subsequently dlopen()s, executing arbitrary constructor code. The attack uses a polyglot PDF/ELF file for single-click, configuration-independent code execution.

MitigationUpgrade Atril Document Viewer to version 1.26.3 or 1.28.4 which contain the patch adding proper g_shell_quote escaping to the ev_spawn function.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Verify Atril Document Viewer is installed
    Run command: atril --version or dpkg -l | grep atril (Debian) / rpm -qa | grep atril (RHEL)
    Affected if Atril is not installed on the system
  2. Identify installed Atril version
    Execute: atril --version and note the version number returned
    Affected if Version is prior to 1.26.3 or 1.28.4 (e.g., 1.26.0, 1.24.x, etc.)
  3. Confirm PDF file handling is enabled
    Check if Atril can open PDF files by attempting to open a PDF or inspecting MIME type associations for application/x-pdf
    Affected if PDF support is enabled and untrusted PDFs can be opened
  4. Review PDF handling behavior
    Monitor Atril process execution when opening PDFs: use strace -f -e execve atril <pdf_file> to observe command-line arguments passed to child processes
    Affected if Link-destination fields in PDFs result in unsanitized command-line arguments being passed to ev_spawn

Atril Document Viewer is affected if installed version is prior to 1.26.3 or 1.28.4 AND PDF file handling is enabled, allowing processing of untrusted PDF documents.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Upgrade Atril Document Viewer to version 1.26.3 or 1.28.4 which contain the patch adding proper g_shell_quote escaping to the ev_spawn function.

Recommended fix High confidence

Atril Document Viewer version 1.26.3 or 1.28.4 (upgrade to the latest available in your distribution's repository)

  1. Check the current installed version of Atril Document Viewer (e.g., `atril --version` or via your package manager)
  2. Identify which version branch you are on (1.26.x or 1.28.x) to select the appropriate fixed release
  3. Upgrade Atril Document Viewer to version 1.26.3 or 1.28.4 (whichever is the latest in your branch) using your distribution's package manager (e.g., `apt update && apt install atril`, `yum update atril`, or `dnf update atril`)
  4. Verify the upgrade was successful by checking the installed version matches 1.26.3 or 1.28.4
  5. Restart any running Atril instances to ensure the patched version is active
Caveat Minor version upgrades typically have low risk; however, test in a non-production environment if concerned about compatibility with custom MATE desktop configurations

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation1.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
8.0 hours of engineering $1,360
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2026-46529 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data