CVE-2026-6844
Analyzed Analyzed - Analysis Complete
Denial of Service in binutils readelf via ELF File Parsing

Publication date: 2026-04-22

Last updated on: 2026-05-20

Assigner: Red Hat, Inc.

Description
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 Executable and Linkable Format (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, leading to a denial of service.
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Meta Information
Published
2026-04-22
Last Modified
2026-05-20
Generated
2026-06-16
AI Q&A
2026-04-22
EPSS Evaluated
2026-06-14
NVD
CVE-2026-6844
EUVD
EUVD-2026-24710
Affected Vendors & Products
Showing 7 associated CPEs
Vendor Product Version / Range
redhat enterprise_linux 7.0
redhat enterprise_linux 8.0
redhat openshift_container_platform 4.0
redhat enterprise_linux 9.0
gnu binutils *
redhat enterprise_linux 10.0
redhat hardened_images *
Helpful Resources
Exploitability
CWE
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KEV
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CWE ID Description
CWE-400 The product does not properly control the allocation and maintenance of a limited resource.
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Executive Summary

CVE-2026-6844 involves two denial of service (DoS) vulnerabilities in the readelf utility of the Binutils package, version 2.46.

The first vulnerability is a resource exhaustion issue where a specially crafted ELF file causes readelf to attempt to allocate about 6.3 terabytes of memory, leading to an out-of-memory (OOM) condition.

The second vulnerability is a null pointer dereference triggered by malformed section header entry size or offset fields in the ELF file, causing a segmentation fault and crashing the utility.

Both vulnerabilities cause readelf to become unresponsive or crash, resulting in denial of service.

Compliance Impact

The vulnerability in the readelf utility causes denial of service conditions but does not impact confidentiality or integrity of data.

Since the vulnerability leads to service unavailability without exposing or altering sensitive data, it primarily affects availability.

Therefore, while it may impact operational continuity, it does not directly violate compliance requirements related to data privacy or protection under standards like GDPR or HIPAA.

Impact Analysis

If you use the vulnerable readelf utility on Linux systems, an attacker with local access can cause the utility to crash or become unresponsive by providing specially crafted ELF files.

This can lead to denial of service conditions, potentially disrupting processes or workflows that rely on readelf for ELF file analysis.

The resource exhaustion vulnerability can cause the system to run out of memory, possibly affecting system stability.

Detection Guidance

This vulnerability can be detected by identifying if the vulnerable version of the readelf utility (version 2.46) from the binutils package is present on your system.

Since the issue is triggered by specially crafted ELF files causing resource exhaustion or segmentation faults, detection involves monitoring for crashes or unresponsiveness of readelf when processing ELF files.

You can check the version of readelf installed by running the command:

  • `readelf --version`

Additionally, testing readelf with known proof-of-concept ELF files (if available internally) can help detect if the vulnerability is exploitable.

Mitigation Strategies

Immediate mitigation steps include avoiding the use of the vulnerable readelf utility on untrusted or specially crafted ELF files that could trigger the denial of service.

Monitoring and restricting access to readelf for unprivileged users can reduce the risk of exploitation.

Applying patches or updates provided by your Linux distribution or the binutils package maintainers that address this vulnerability is the recommended long-term mitigation.

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