CVE-2026-90801
Received Received - Intake

Buffer Overflow in GNU Binutils ld Component

Publication date: 2026-09-14

Last updated on: 2026-09-14

Assigner: VulDB

Description
A security flaw has been discovered in GNU Binutils 2.47. This impacts the function cache_bwrite of the file bfd/cache.c of the component ld. The manipulation of the argument nbytes results in buffer overflow. The attack requires a local approach. The exploit has been released to the public and may be used for attacks. The project was informed of the problem early through a bug report but has not responded yet.

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Meta Information

Published
2026-09-14
Last Modified
2026-09-14
Generated
2026-09-14
AI Q&A
2026-09-14
EPSS Evaluated
N/A
NVD
CVE-2026-90801
EUVD
EUVD-2026-77631

Affected Vendors & Products

Showing 1 associated CPE
Vendor Product Version / Range
gnu binutils 2.47

Helpful Resources

Exploitability

CWE
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KEV
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CWE ID Description
CWE-119 The product performs operations on a memory buffer, but it reads from or writes to a memory location outside the buffer's intended boundary. This may result in read or write operations on unexpected memory locations that could be linked to other variables, data structures, or internal program data.
CWE-120 The product copies an input buffer to an output buffer without verifying that the size of the input buffer is less than the size of the output buffer.

Attack-Flow Graph

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Executive Summary

CVE-2026-90801 is a heap-buffer-overflow vulnerability in GNU Binutils 2.47 affecting the ld component. It occurs in the cache_bwrite function of bfd/cache.c when processing malformed ELF files with --gc-sections and -w flags. The issue stems from a mismatch between allocated buffer size (22 bytes) and attempted write size (32 bytes), causing an out-of-bounds read that may leak heap memory or enable further memory corruption.

Detection Guidance

To detect this vulnerability, monitor for crashes or memory corruption errors when using GNU Binutils 2.47 with the --gc-sections and -w flags on malformed ELF files. Check for heap-buffer-overflow messages in logs or crash reports.

Impact Analysis

This vulnerability allows attackers with local access to exploit buffer overflow in ld when processing untrusted ELF files. It may lead to memory disclosure or enable additional attacks depending on heap layout. Systems using Binutils 2.47 for linking untrusted files (CI/CD, build systems) are particularly at risk. Exploitation requires specific flags and malformed input.

Compliance Impact

This vulnerability could impact compliance with GDPR and HIPAA by potentially exposing sensitive data through heap memory leaks. If exploited, it may allow unauthorized access to adjacent memory, which could include personal or health information processed by systems using GNU Binutils 2.47. This risk is higher in environments handling regulated data, such as CI/CD pipelines or build systems processing untrusted files.

Mitigation Strategies

Avoid using --gc-sections and -w flags on untrusted ELF files. Audit object-file provenance in build systems. Update to a patched version of GNU Binutils once available. Implement input validation for ELF files in CI/CD pipelines.

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