CVE-2026-28289: exploitation status and patch state

CVE-2026-28289 · CVSS 10.0 CRITICAL · EPSS 31%

FreeScout is a free help desk and shared inbox built with PHP's Laravel framework. A patch bypass vulnerability for CVE-2026-27636 in FreeScout 1.8.206 and earlier allows any authenticated user with file upload permissions to achieve Remote Code Execution (RCE) on the server by uploading a malicious .htaccess file using a zero-width space character prefix to bypass the security check. The vulnerability exists in the sanitizeUploadedFileName() function in app/Http/Helper.php. The function contains a Time-of-Check to Time-of-Use (TOCTOU) flaw where the dot-prefix check occurs before sanitization removes invisible characters. This vulnerability is fixed in 1.8.207.

Is CVE-2026-28289 exploited?

• Not in the CISA KEV catalog.
• EPSS puts exploitation in the next 30 days at 31%.
• Public exploit code: packaged in a public tool.

Which products and versions are affected?

No affected package list recorded here yet.

Is there a patch?

No patch identifier recorded here yet.

What PlainSec published about CVE-2026-28289

• Critical FreeScout Vulnerability Leads to Full Server Compromise (2026-03-06)

Primary sources

• NVD record
• Metasploit: exploit/multi/http/freescout_htaccess_rce

What this record does not say

• No affected package data.
• No patch identifier.

KEV and EPSS are re-checked daily. Record last updated 2026-08-11.