CVE-2026-0861

What it is

Passing too large an alignment to the memalign suite of functions (memalign, posix_memalign, aligned_alloc) in the GNU C Library version 2.30 to 2.42 may result in an integer overflow, which could consequently result in a heap corruption. Note that the attacker must have control over both, the size as well as the alignment arguments of the memalign function to be able to exploit this. The size parameter must be close enough to PTRDIFF_MAX so as to overflow size_t along with the large alignment argument. This limits the malicious inputs for the alignment for memalign to the range [1<<62+ 1, 1<<63] and exactly 1<<63 for posix_memalign and aligned_alloc. Typically the alignment argument passed to such functions is a known constrained quantity (e.g. page size, block size, struct sizes) and is not attacker controlled, because of which this may not be easily exploitable in practice. An application bug could potentially result in the input alignment being too large, e.g. due to a different buffer overflow or integer overflow in the application or its dependent libraries, but that is again an uncommon usage pattern given typical sources of alignments.

At a glance

Exploitability

Can be exploited locally on the machine without logging in. High risk of data exposure, data tampering, service disruption.

Exploit odds

0.4% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days (EPSS).

Fix

A patch, advisory or fixed version is referenced. Upgrade or apply it.

Timeline

1. 2026-01-14 21:15 UTC PublishedDisclosed publicly on CVE.org and NVD
2. 2026-06-17 10:11 UTC Last updatedMost recent change to the record

Why it ranks here

• Exploited in the wild: no, CISA does not list it.
• Exploit odds: 0.4% in the next 30 days (EPSS).
• Severity: 8.4 HIGH (CVSS).
• Fix: a patch or advisory is linked.

Details

Published

2026-01-14 21:15 UTC

Last modified

2026-06-17 10:11 UTC

Exploit probability

0.4% · EPSS, next 30 days

Weakness

CWE-190 · Integer overflow

Record status

Analyzed

Affected

• Gnu Glibc ≤ 2.42

Attack profile CVSS 3.1 · 8.4

Attack vector

Local

Complexity

Low

Privileges needed

None

User interaction

None

Scope

Unchanged

Confidentiality

High

Integrity

High

Availability

High

Is it in your code?

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