Is this vulnerability remotely exploitable over the network?

Yes, in typical deployments it is remotely exploitable, but it requires authenticated access to the Pi-hole FTL API or management interface that controls the `dhcp.hosts` configuration. An external attacker would need valid credentials, an exposed management endpoint, or control of an integration that is allowed to push DHCP host entries.

What level of access does an attacker need to exploit this issue?

The attacker must be able to authenticate as a user or service account with permissions to modify the DHCP hosts configuration parameter. This could be an administrative web interface user, an API token holder, or an automated system with configuration rights.

What is the safest general fix pattern for developers or maintainers?

The core fix pattern is to enforce strict validation and encoding for any user-supplied configuration values before writing them into `dnsmasq` or other downstream configuration files. This includes rejecting newline/control characters, applying character whitelists, and generating configurations from structured, typed data instead of raw string concatenation.

Severity:

HIGH RISK

(8.8)

Command Injection via Configuration Injection (CWE-78) in Pi-hole FTL DHCP Hosts Parameter

CVE-2026-35521

Published:

Apr 7, 2026

Status:

Undergoing Analysis

Summary

Affected Context

Exploit Preconditions

Why This Happens

Potential Impact

General Mitigation Guidance

How Teams Detect Issues Like This

Frequently Asked Questions

Source

NDV

Recent Vulnerabilities

CWE-77;CWE-78

CRITICAL RISK

CRITICAL

(9.8)

OS Command Injection (CWE-78) in Totolink A7100RU CGI Handler setAccessDeviceCfg

Remote Code Execution on the Router

April 12, 2026

CWE-77;CWE-78

CRITICAL RISK

CRITICAL

(9.8)

OS Command Injection (CWE-78) in Totolink A7100RU CGI setLedCfg Handler

Remote Code Execution on the Router

April 12, 2026

Vulnerability Type

Category:

Command Injection

CWE:

CWE-78;CWE-93

Impact:

Remote Code Execution

Severity:

HIGH RISK

(8.8)

CVSS Version:

3.1

Vulnerability Type

Category:

Command Injection

CWE:

CWE-78;CWE-93

Impact:

Remote Code Execution

Severity:

HIGH RISK

(8.8)

CVSS Version:

3.1

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Command Injection via Configuration Injection (CWE-78) in Pi-hole FTL DHCP Hosts Parameter

Summary

Affected Context

Exploit Preconditions

Why This Happens

Potential Impact

General Mitigation Guidance

How Teams Detect Issues Like This

Frequently Asked Questions

Source

Recent Vulnerabilities

CRITICAL RISK

CRITICAL

(9.8)

OS Command Injection (CWE-78) in Totolink A7100RU CGI Handler setAccessDeviceCfg

CRITICAL RISK

CRITICAL

(9.8)

OS Command Injection (CWE-78) in Totolink A7100RU CGI setLedCfg Handler

Vulnerability Type

Vulnerability Type

Vulnerability Type

Catch This CVE While Code Is Being Written

Ship clean & secure code faster

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