CVE-2025-69195
📋 TL;DR
A stack-based buffer overflow vulnerability in GNU Wget2's filename sanitization logic allows remote attackers to trigger memory corruption via specially crafted URLs. This can cause application crashes and potentially enable arbitrary code execution. Users and systems running vulnerable versions of Wget2 are affected when processing untrusted URLs.
💻 Affected Systems
- GNU Wget2
📦 What is this software?
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Remote code execution leading to full system compromise, data theft, or lateral movement within the network.
Likely Case
Application crash (denial of service) with potential for limited code execution depending on exploit sophistication.
If Mitigated
Application crash with no further impact if exploit attempts are blocked or fail.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires user interaction (running wget2 on malicious URL) and specific filename restriction configurations.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Check vendor advisory for specific patched version
Vendor Advisory: https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2025-69195
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
1. Check current wget2 version: wget2 --version
2. Update via package manager: sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade wget2 (Debian/Ubuntu) OR sudo yum update wget2 (RHEL/CentOS)
3. Verify update: wget2 --version
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable filename restriction options
allAvoid using --restrict-file-names or similar options that trigger the vulnerable code path
Avoid using: wget2 --restrict-file-names=nocontrol ...
Use URL filtering
allImplement network filtering to block suspicious URLs containing path manipulation patterns
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Restrict wget2 usage to trusted sources only through policy controls
- Monitor for crash logs and unusual wget2 process behavior
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check if wget2 version is older than patched release and if --restrict-file-names options are usedCheck Version:
wget2 --version | head -1Verify Fix Applied:
Confirm wget2 version is updated to patched release and test with known safe URLs📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Wget2 crash logs (segmentation faults)
- Unusual command-line arguments with long URL paths
Network Indicators:
- Outbound connections to suspicious URLs with complex path structures
SIEM Query:
process.name:"wget2" AND (event.action:"segmentation fault" OR cmdline:"--restrict-file-names")