CVE-2026-60159 in VirtualBox
Summary
by MITRE • 07/22/2026
Vulnerability in the Oracle VM VirtualBox product of Oracle Virtualization (component: Core). The supported version that is affected is 7.2.12. Difficult to exploit vulnerability allows high privileged attacker with logon to the infrastructure where Oracle VM VirtualBox executes to compromise Oracle VM VirtualBox. While the vulnerability is in Oracle VM VirtualBox, attacks may significantly impact additional products (scope change). Successful attacks of this vulnerability can result in takeover of Oracle VM VirtualBox. CVSS 3.1 Base Score 7.5 (Confidentiality, Integrity and Availability impacts). CVSS Vector: (CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H).
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/22/2026
This vulnerability exists within Oracle VM VirtualBox version 7.2.12, specifically in the Core component of the Oracle Virtualization suite, representing a significant security weakness that can be exploited by adversaries with elevated privileges. The flaw is classified as difficult to exploit but carries substantial risk due to its potential to allow a high-privileged attacker who has already gained access to the underlying infrastructure where VirtualBox operates to compromise the entire virtualization platform. The vulnerability's impact extends beyond just VirtualBox itself, as successful exploitation can result in cascading effects that significantly affect additional products within the broader ecosystem, indicating a scope change that amplifies the potential damage.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from insufficient access controls or privilege management within the VirtualBox core architecture, allowing an attacker with local system access to escalate their privileges and gain complete control over the virtualization environment. This represents a critical failure in the principle of least privilege enforcement, where proper separation of concerns between different security domains has been compromised. The CVSS 3.1 score of 7.5 indicates high severity across all impact vectors, with confidentiality, integrity, and availability being simultaneously compromised, suggesting that successful exploitation could lead to complete system takeover.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is particularly concerning for enterprise environments where VirtualBox serves as a foundational virtualization platform. Attackers who successfully exploit this weakness can potentially gain unauthorized access to all virtual machines managed by the compromised VirtualBox instance, leading to data breaches, system corruption, or complete service disruption. The attack vector requires local access with high privileges, which aligns with ATT&CK technique T1068 (Local Privilege Escalation) and may also involve techniques related to privilege abuse and system compromise. Organizations using this version of VirtualBox face significant risk if their infrastructure has been compromised at the host level, as the vulnerability essentially provides a backdoor for complete virtualization platform control.
The scope change aspect of this vulnerability indicates that its impact extends beyond the immediate VirtualBox component to affect other systems or products within the broader attack surface. This could include guest operating systems, associated virtualization tools, or even network infrastructure components that rely on proper virtualization security boundaries. Organizations should implement immediate mitigation strategies including updating to a patched version of Oracle VM VirtualBox, implementing additional host-based security controls, and conducting thorough vulnerability assessments of their virtualization environments. The vulnerability's classification under CWE categories related to privilege escalation and access control failures underscores the fundamental security architecture weaknesses that need remediation beyond simple patching measures.