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Critical

Unauthenticated Arbitrary File Creation or Truncation in Splunk PostgreSQL Sidecar Service

IdentifiersCVE-2026-20253CWE-306· Missing Authentication for…

CVE-2026-20253 is a critical vulnerability in Splunk Enterprise versions below 10.2.4 and 10.0.7, and Splunk Cloud Platform versions below 10.4.2604.3 and 10.2.2510.14. The flaw exists in a PostgreSQL sidecar service endpoint that lacks authentication controls. Because the endpoint does not enforce authentication, any network-reachable attacker can invoke file operations without credentials and create or truncate arbitrary files on the affected system. Based on the provided content, the vulnerable functionality is exposed through the PostgreSQL sidecar service endpoint rather than the primary authenticated application workflow.

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ANALYST BRIEF

Impact, mitigation & remediation

What it means. What to do now. Patch path, mitigations, and the assume-compromise checklist.

Impact

What an attacker gets, and what they’ve been doing with it.

Successful exploitation allows an unauthenticated remote attacker to create new files or truncate existing files arbitrarily on the target system. This can result in denial of service, destruction of data, corruption of databases or application state, configuration tampering, and placement of attacker-controlled files that may facilitate persistence or further compromise. The supporting content states the issue could lead to full system compromise depending on what files are targeted.

Mitigation

If you can’t patch tonight, do this now.

If immediate patching is not possible, restrict network access to the PostgreSQL sidecar service endpoint so it is not reachable by untrusted users or external networks. Limit exposure to only required management paths and trusted hosts using firewalling, segmentation, or access controls. Where operationally feasible, reduce unnecessary Splunk Web and related service exposure until patched. The provided content does not describe a product-specific mitigation for this endpoint beyond upgrading.

Remediation

Patch, then assume compromise.

Upgrade Splunk Enterprise to 10.2.4, 10.0.7, or later. Upgrade Splunk Cloud Platform to 10.4.2604.3, 10.2.2510.14, or later. More generally, deploy the vendor fixes for all affected supported branches as provided by Splunk.
PUBLIC EXPLOITS

Exploits

No public exploits tracked yet. Mallory keeps watching.

VALID 0 / 0 TOTALView more in app

No public exploit code observed for this vulnerability.

EXPOSURE SURFACE

Affected products & vendors

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VendorProductType
SplunkCloud Platformapplication
SplunkEnterpriseapplication

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What this page doesn’t show

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Exposure mapping

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Threat actor evidence

Every observed campaign linking this CVE to a named adversary.

Associated malware

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Detection signatures

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Vendor-by-vendor mapping

Cross-references every affected SKU, including bundled OEM variants.

Social activity6

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