CVE-2026-6845
MediumCVSS 5.0Exploitation Probability (EPSS)
Low risk4th percentile - higher than 4% of all known CVEs
Summary
A flaw was found in binutils, specifically within the `readelf` utility, allowing a local attacker to cause a Denial of Service (DoS) by tricking a user into processing a specially crafted ELF file. Exploitation can lead to excessive resource consumption or a program crash, making the system unresponsive.
Risk Assessment
The risk for the organization involves potential disruption of system operations through local exploitation, leading to service availability issues or productivity loss when users process malicious ELF files.
Recommendation
It is recommended to immediately update the binutils package to the latest available version containing a fix for this vulnerability. Additionally, restrict processing of untrusted ELF files and apply the principle of least privilege for users.
Other vulnerabilities in binutils
See all- CVE-2025-69645Medium
Binutils objdump contains a denial-of-service vulnerability when processing a crafted binary with malformed DWARF debug information. A logic error in handling DWARF compilation units can result in an invalid offset_size value being used in byte_get_little_endian, leading to an abort (SIGABRT). The issue was observed in binutils 2.44, and a local attacker can trigger the crash by supplying a malicious input file.
- CVE-2026-6846High
A heap-buffer-overflow vulnerability was found in binutils when processing a specially crafted XCOFF object file during linking. A local attacker could trick a user into processing this malicious file, leading to arbitrary code execution or denial of service.
- CVE-2026-6844Medium
A flaw was found in the readelf utility of the binutils package. A local attacker could exploit two Denial of Service (DoS) vulnerabilities by providing a specially crafted ELF file. One vulnerability, a resource exhaustion (CWE-400), can lead to an out-of-memory condition. The other, a null pointer dereference (CWE-476), can cause a segmentation fault. Both issues can result in the readelf utility becoming unresponsive or crashing.
- CVE-2020-35507Medium
A flaw exists in bfd_pef_parse_function_stubs of bfd/pef.c in binutils versions prior to 2.34. An attacker able to submit a crafted file processed by objdump can cause a NULL pointer dereference.
- CVE-2020-35496Medium
A flaw exists in bfd_pef_scan_start_address() of bfd/pef.c in binutils. An attacker able to submit a crafted file processed by objdump can cause a NULL pointer dereference.
- CVE-2020-35495Medium
A flaw exists in binutils /bfd/pef.c. An attacker able to submit a crafted input file processed by objdump can cause a NULL pointer dereference.
- CVE-2020-35494Medium
A flaw in binutils /opcodes/tic4x-dis.c causes the use of uninitialized memory when processing a crafted input file. The highest threat is to application availability, with a lower threat to data confidentiality. The flaw affects binutils versions prior to 2.34.
- CVE-2020-35493Medium
A heap buffer overflow exists in binutils in bfd/pef.c when a crafted PEF file is parsed by objdump, leading to an out-of-bounds read. The flaw affects binutils versions prior to 2.34.
Original NVD description (English source)
A flaw was found in binutils, specifically within the `readelf` utility. This vulnerability allows a local attacker to cause a Denial of Service (DoS) by tricking a user into processing a specially crafted Executable and Linkable Format (ELF) file. The exploitation of this flaw can lead to the system becoming unresponsive due to excessive resource consumption or a program crash.
Vulnerability data from NVD (NIST) · CISA KEV · EPSS