# CVE-2026-53984: Ground Station unauthenticated database destruction via Socket.IO

Source: https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-53984-ground-station-unauthenticated-database-destruction-via-socket-io  
Publisher: Junglewise Threat Intelligence, https://junglewise.ai/threats  
Published: 2026-08-06. Updated: 2026-09-25  
License: CC BY 4.0 with a link back

CVE-2026-53984 · Severity: critical · CVSS 9.1 · Published 2026-08-06

Ground Station is a browser-based satellite tracking and control suite. An unauthenticated attacker can remotely delete the entire database and inject fabricated satellite and configuration data by connecting to the Socket.IO server without credentials and sending malicious database commands. This could cause loss of all operational data (orbital sources, hardware configurations, observation schedules) or redirect the ground station to attacker-controlled servers.

Technologies: [Sgoudelis Ground Station](https://junglewise.ai/threats/technologies/ground-station). Vendors: [Sgoudelis](https://junglewise.ai/threats/vendors/sgoudelis).

## Quick answers

**Is CVE-2026-53984 exploited in the wild?** No. Junglewise Threat Intelligence has no report of CVE-2026-53984 being exploited in the wild.

**How severe is CVE-2026-53984?** Critical severity, with a CVSS score of 9.1, published 6 August 2026.

**Which products and versions are affected?** Sgoudelis Ground Station prior to 0.6.0.

**Is there a fix for CVE-2026-53984?** No fixed version is recorded yet. Check the vendor's advisory in the references below. If you run it, Junglewise drafts a mitigation that fits your setup and applies it once you approve, with senior security engineers behind it.

**How is CVE-2026-53984 attacked?** It is attacked over the network.

**Am I affected by CVE-2026-53984?** Check whether you run Sgoudelis Ground Station at an affected version. Junglewise does that check for you around the clock: connect your code, cloud and domains, and it matches new vulnerabilities like this one against what you actually run and tells you when one reaches you.

## Technical details

The vulnerability is an unauthenticated database destruction and arbitrary SQL injection flaw in the Socket.IO server's database_backup event handler. The Socket.IO server listens on port 7000 with authentication disabled and a wildcard CORS policy, allowing any network peer to connect without credentials. An attacker can emit the database_backup event with a malicious full_restore command containing attacker-supplied SQL, which is executed via raw exec_driver_sql without sanitization. This allows dropping all tables and recreating the SQLite database from arbitrary CREATE TABLE and INSERT INTO statements, permanently destroying all satellite records and observation schedules or planting malicious data. The vulnerability requires only network access to port 7000 and no prior authentication.

## Affected products

- sgoudelis Ground Station prior to 0.6.0

## Timeline

- 2026-08-06: disclosed
- other: Patch expected in version 0.6.0

## References

- [https://github.com/sgoudelis/ground-station](https://github.com/sgoudelis/ground-station)
- [https://github.com/sgoudelis/ground-station/commit/2ecde82a8814cbea18883ce023bf45cbf06172eb](https://github.com/sgoudelis/ground-station/commit/2ecde82a8814cbea18883ce023bf45cbf06172eb)

## Related threats

- [Ground Station missing authorization in get-orbital-sources handler](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-123485-ground-station-from-0-6-0-before-0-8-20-does-not-restrict-the)
- [ground-station authentication bypass in setup.restore](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-103244-ground-station-versions-before-0-8-0-contain-an-authentication)
- [Ground Station unauthenticated SSRF in orbital source configuration](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-53983-ground-station-unauthenticated-ssrf-in-orbital-source)
- [Ground Station unauthenticated denial-of-service in Socket.IO](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-53985-ground-station-unauthenticated-denial-of-service-in-socket-io)