CVE-2026-8500
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 · uneditedWeb::Passwd versions through 0.03 for Perl is vulnerable to RCE. Web::Passwd is a small CGI application for managing htpasswd files using the htpasswd command. The user parameter is not validated or escaped, and is used as the last argument on the command line, allowing for command injection.
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 confidenceWeb::Passwd versions 0.03 and earlier contain a command injection vulnerability in the user parameter handling. The user-supplied input is passed directly as the final argument to the htpasswd command line without validation or escaping, allowing an attacker to inject arbitrary shell commands.
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
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify if Web::Passwd is installedCheck your Perl library installation directory or look for Web::Passwd in your project's dependency list (e.g., check cpanfile, Makefile.PL, or run 'perldoc -l Web::Passwd')Affected if Web::Passwd is not found in your environment
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Determine the installed version of Web::PasswdRun 'perl -MWeb::Passwd -e "print $Web::Passwd::VERSION"' or check the version listed in your installed module filesAffected if The version is 0.03 or earlier
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Locate the Web::Passwd source codeFind the installed Web::Passwd.pm file (typically in your Perl @INC path) and examine the code that handles the user parameter, looking for system calls or backtick execution invoking htpasswdAffected if The code passes the user parameter directly to htpasswd without sanitization
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Identify if the vulnerable code path is reachableReview your application code that uses Web::Passwd to determine if user input is passed to the affected parameter without prior validationAffected if User-supplied input reaches the Web::Passwd user parameter handler
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Verify htpasswd is invoked by your Web::Passwd usageSearch the Web::Passwd code for exec, system, or backtick calls that invoke the htpasswd binary, and confirm your configuration triggers these callsAffected if Your Web::Passwd usage triggers htpasswd command execution with user-controlled input
You are affected if Web::Passwd version 0.03 or earlier is installed and your application passes unsanitized user input to the vulnerable parameter that gets passed to the htpasswd command line.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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.
From vendor dataImplement strict input validation for the user parameter, using whitelisting of allowed characters (alphanumeric only), or employ proper shell escaping mechanisms when constructing the htpasswd command. Consider refactoring to use htpasswd library functions instead of invoking the binary.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA3.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,832.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2026-8500 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2026-8500 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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