Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2026-45994

HIGH · 7.1 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-05-27
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 5.10.258 / 5.15.209 or later.
See remediation →
73/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Zero-click Patch available

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ibmasm: fix OOB reads in command_file_write due to missing size checks The command_file_write() handler allocates a kernel buffer of exactly count bytes and copies user data into it, but does not validate the buffer against the dot command protocol before passing it to get_dot_command_size() and get_dot_command_timeout(). Since both the allocation size (count) and the header fields (command_size, data_size) are independently user-controlled, an attacker can cause get_dot_command_size() to return a value exceeding the allocation, triggering OOB reads in get_dot_command_timeout() and an out-of-bounds memcpy_toio() that leaks kernel heap memory to the service processor. Fix with two guards: reject writes smaller than sizeof(struct dot_command_header) before allocation, then after copying user data reject commands where the buffer is smaller than the total size declared by the header (sizeof(header) + command_size + data_size). This ensures all subsequent header and payload field accesses stay within the buffer.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis
How this class of weakness works · CWE-125

The code reads past the end (or before the start) of a buffer, returning memory that was never meant to be exposed. Attackers use it to leak secrets like keys or to defeat memory-protection defences. Remediation is validating indices and lengths before every read.

General guidance for the out-of-bounds read class — the official description and references above are authoritative for this specific CVE. Want a bespoke review and a reviewed fix? Ask our team →

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
Linux KernelOperating system
Affected:>= 2.6.12.1, < 5.10.258>= 5.11, < 5.15.209>= 5.16, < 6.1.175>= 6.2, < 6.6.140>= 6.7, < 6.12.86>= 6.13, < 6.18.27>= 6.19, < 7.0.4= 2.6.12

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
None
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:H

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 5.10.258 / 5.15.209 / 6.1.175 or later
Fixed in 5.10.2585.15.2096.1.175
Vendor patch git.kernel.org →
Recommended fix High confidence

Kernel 6.6.140+ (or 6.1.175+, 5.15.209+, or 5.10.258+ depending on current branch)

  1. Identify the current running kernel version using 'uname -r'
  2. Check which version range your current kernel falls into (>= 2.6.12.1 and < 5.10.258, >= 5.11 and < 5.15.209, >= 5.16 and < 6.1.175, or >= 6.2 and < 6.6.140)
  3. For systems running kernel < 5.10.258: upgrade to kernel version 5.10.258 or later
  4. For systems running kernel >= 5.11 and < 5.15.209: upgrade to kernel version 5.15.209 or later
  5. For systems running kernel >= 5.16 and < 6.1.175: upgrade to kernel version 6.1.175 or later
  6. For systems running kernel >= 6.2 and < 6.6.140: upgrade to kernel version 6.6.140 or later
  7. Alternatively, upgrade to the latest stable kernel release (6.12.x or newer) which includes this fix
  8. After kernel upgrade, reboot the system to load the fixed kernel
Caveat Major kernel upgrades may require recompilation of out-of-tree modules; ensure driver compatibility before upgrading

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

We can perform the upgrade in your staging environment and verify nothing breaks — typical engagement from $3,200. Get the upgrade done

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2026-45994 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2026-45994 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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