Polkit: polkit: denial of service via unbounded input processing through standard input
Priority LOW 24CWE-770Published · Updated
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Local
- Privileges required
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- Denial of service
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- None · None · High
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 3 fixed, 5 without a fix
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · CNA. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat. Impact type from CWE-770.
Summary
A flaw was found in polkit. A local user can exploit this by providing a specially crafted, excessively long input to the `polkit-agent-helper-1` setuid binary via standard input (stdin). This unbounded input can lead to an out-of-memory (OOM) condition, resulting in a Denial of Service (DoS) for the system.
Why it matters now
Exploitation None reported CISA SSVC · not in CISA KEV
EPSS 0.00156 4th percentileScored 2026-11-07
Fix Partial Red Hat: 2 advisoriesRed Hat: 3 fixed, 5 without a fix
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- No
- Technical impact
- Partial
The decision (Track, Attend, Act) also depends on your mission and well-being impact; see CISA's SSVC guide.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red Hat | Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 | — | 125-4.el10_2.1 | Patch available | CNA |
| Red Hat | Red Hat Hardened Images | — | 127-5.1.hum1 | Patch available | CNA |
| Red Hat | Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 | — | — | No fix listed | CNA |
| Red Hat | Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 | — | — | No fix listed | CNA |
| Red Hat | Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 | — | — | No fix listed | CNA |
| Red Hat | Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 | — | — | No fix listed | CNA |
| Red Hat | Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4 | — | — | No fix listed | CNA |
| Red Hat | Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4 | — | — | No fix listed | CNA |
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 VendorRed Hat Affected — Fixed in 125-4.el10_2.1 Patch available CNA
- Red Hat Hardened Images VendorRed Hat Affected — Fixed in 127-5.1.hum1 Patch available CNA
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 VendorRed Hat Affected — Fixed in — No fix listed CNA
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 VendorRed Hat Affected — Fixed in — No fix listed CNA
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 VendorRed Hat Affected — Fixed in — No fix listed CNA
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 VendorRed Hat Affected — Fixed in — No fix listed CNA
- Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4 VendorRed Hat Affected — Fixed in — No fix listed CNA
- Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4 VendorRed Hat Affected — Fixed in — No fix listed CNA
CPE configurations NVD · 7
| CPE | Versions | Role | Vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| cpe:2.3:a:freedesktop:polkit:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | not specified by NVD | Vulnerable | Freedesktop |
| cpe:2.3:a:redhat:openshift_container_platform:4.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 4.0 | Vulnerable | Red Hat |
| cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux:6.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 6.0 | Vulnerable | Red Hat |
| cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 7.0 | Vulnerable | Red Hat |
| cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux:8.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 8.0 | Vulnerable | Red Hat |
| cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux:9.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 9.0 | Vulnerable | Red Hat |
| cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux:10.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 10.0 | Vulnerable | Red Hat |
- cpe:2.3:a:freedesktop:polkit:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions not specified by NVD Vulnerable ·Freedesktop
- cpe:2.3:a:redhat:openshift_container_platform:4.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 4.0 Vulnerable ·Red Hat
- cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux:6.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 6.0 Vulnerable ·Red Hat
- cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 7.0 Vulnerable ·Red Hat
- cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux:8.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 8.0 Vulnerable ·Red Hat
- cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux:9.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 9.0 Vulnerable ·Red Hat
- cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux:10.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 10.0 Vulnerable ·Red Hat
Remediation
Red Hat 2 advisories
- RHSA-2026:66287 Released 2026-09-10 · Red Hat rating ModerateRed Hat Hardened Images RPMs Security Update
- Red Hat Hardened Images polkit-127-5.1.hum1@aarch64, polkit-127-5.1.hum1@src, polkit-127-5.1.hum1@x86_64 +6
- RHSA-2026:59997 Released 2026-08-26 · Red Hat rating Moderatepolkit security update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 10) polkit-devel-125-4.el10_2.1, polkit-docs-125-4.el10_2.1
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 10) polkit-125-4.el10_2.1, polkit-libs-125-4.el10_2.1
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 10) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:59997 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 10) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:59997 |
| Red Hat Hardened Images | Fixed | RHSA-2026:66287 |
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-4897
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-v4jf-wwp4-588q
References
More Red Hat Enterprise Linux vulnerabilities
- TI-2019-08259 Underflow in PHP-FPM can lead to RCE KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2018-10530 Code injection in [UNKNOWN] RichFaces KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2014-05975 GNU Bash through 4.3 bash43-025 processes trailing strings after certain malformed… KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2014-05157 GNU Bash through 4.3 processes trailing strings after function definitions in the values… KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2025-23530 Sudo before 1.9.17p1 allows local users to obtain root access because /etc/nsswitch.conf… KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.3
- TI-2021-17490 mod_proxy SSRF KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.0
Sources
- CVE-2026-4897 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-4897 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-v4jf-wwp4-588q · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2026-4897 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. Sources and licences