CVE-2026-66902
Arbitrary command execution via external_account credential JSON in Google::Auth (Perl)
Is CVE-2026-66902 being exploited?
Not confirmed. CVE-2026-66902 does not appear in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, which records only exploitation that has been observed and reported publicly. That is evidence of absence of a report, not evidence the flaw is unattacked. EPSS currently estimates a 0.44% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
How severe is CVE-2026-66902?
CVE-2026-66902 is rated Critical with a CVSS score of 9.8. Severity describes how bad exploitation would be, not how likely it is: pair it with exploitation evidence before deciding what to patch first.
Is there a patch for CVE-2026-66902?
Yes. A fix has been recorded for CVE-2026-66902. The vendor advisory is the authority on the exact fixed version — apply it from there rather than from a summary.
What does CVE-2026-66902 affect?
CVE-2026-66902 affects Google::Auth (Perl) < 0.06, Perl apps using Application Default Credentials, Apps loading GOOGLE_APPLICATION_CREDENTIALS with external_account.executable. Confirm the exact affected versions against the vendor advisory before deciding you are exposed.
What should I do about CVE-2026-66902?
Upgrade Google::Auth to >=0.06; validate/restrict credential JSON and credential file sources.
Exploitation status reflects CISA's KEV catalog as we last synced it. Check the catalog directly.
Attacker-supplied external_account credentials can run arbitrary shell commands as the application user via system($command).
Immediate action required
- affected< 0.06
As published in the CVE Program record. A version outside these ranges is not a statement that it is unaffected — vendors sometimes understate a range, and distribution-backported builds carry upstream numbers that do not reflect what was patched into them.