Heap buffer over-read in libexpat XML_ParseBuffer
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Attack requirements
- Present
- Impact type
- —
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- High · None · Low
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 10 fixed, 7 without a fix
Attack profile from CVSS 4.0 · CNA. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat.
Summary
libexpat through 2.8.5 contains a heap buffer over-read in xmlparse.c. XML_ParseBuffer advances the buffer end by a caller-supplied length without checking it against the allocated size, so repeated calls read past the heap allocation (CWE-125). A network attacker without privileges or user interaction can read adjacent heap memory through the calling application, recovering pointers that defeat ASLR.
Written with Claude Haiku 5.5 from the sources below · 2026-11-07
Description from the CNA
libexpat before commit 13c5f63 contains a heap buffer over-read vulnerability in xmlparse.c. XML_ParseBuffer advances the parse buffer end with parser->m_bufferEnd += len using a caller-supplied length that is not validated against the allocated buffer size, so repeated XML_ParseBuffer calls move m_bufferEnd past the end of the heap allocation and subsequent parsing reads out of bounds. Reaching this path requires a parse buffer to already be present; otherwise XML_ParseBuffer returns XML_ERROR_NO_BUFFER. A buffer is present after a prior call to XML_GetBuffer, either directly (the common case) or indirectly through a prior XML_Parse call that allocates the buffer internally. The over-read discloses adjacent heap memory to the calling application, recovering heap pointers, libc function pointers, and code pointers sufficient to defeat ASLR and build further exploitation primitives.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- Yes
- 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| libexpat project | libexpat | up to 2.8.5 | — | Patch available | CNA |
- libexpat Vendorlibexpat project Affected up to 2.8.5 Fixed in — Patch available CNA
CPE names Threatist (inferred) · 1
Inferred from how NVD named this product before; not given by a source.
| CPE | Versions | Role | Vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| cpe:2.3:a:libexpat_project:libexpat:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | — | — | libexpat project |
- cpe:2.3:a:libexpat_project:libexpat:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions — — ·libexpat project
Remediation
Upgrade libexpat to a build that includes commit 13c5f63. Red Hat fixes it in RHSA-2026:88247 (RHEL 9 AppStream and BaseOS), RHSA-2026:88248 (RHEL 10 AppStream and BaseOS), RHSA-2026:92323 (RHEL 8 BaseOS), RHSA-2026:89907 (Update Infrastructure 5), RHSA-2026:94802 (Discovery 2), RHSA-2026:95365 (Cost Management On-Premise 1), RHSA-2026:95346 (OpenShift Container Platform 4.22), and RHSA-2026:85985 and RHSA-2026:77959 (Hardened Images). Red Hat lists no fix plan for RHEL 6, 7, 8, 9 or OpenShift Container Platform 4 and 5, and lists OpenShift AI (RHOAI) as affected without a fix.
Written with Claude Haiku 5.5 from the sources below · 2026-11-07
Red Hat 10 advisories
- RHSA-2026:95346 Released 2026-11-06 · Red Hat rating CriticalOpenShift Container Platform 4.22.22 bug fix and security update
- Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4.22 rhcos-aarch64-4.22.9.8.202611032353-0, rhcos-ppc64le-4.22.9.8.202611032353-0, rhcos-s390x-4.22.9.8.202611032353-0 +1
- RHSA-2026:95365 Released 2026-11-04 · Red Hat rating CriticalRed Hat Cost Management On-Premise container image update
- Red Hat Cost Management On-Premise 1 registry.redhat.io/costmanagement/costmanagement-ui-rhel10
- RHSA-2026:94802 Released 2026-11-04 · Red Hat rating CriticalA Subscription Management tool for finding and reporting Red Hat product usage
- Red Hat Discovery 2 registry.redhat.io/discovery/discovery-server-rhel9, registry.redhat.io/discovery/discovery-ui-rhel9
Show 7 more Red Hat advisories
- RHSA-2026:92323 Released 2026-10-30 · Red Hat rating Importantexpat security update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 8) expat-2.5.0-6.el8_10, expat-devel-2.5.0-6.el8_10
- RHSA-2026:89907 Released 2026-10-26 · Red Hat rating CriticalRed Hat Update Infrastructure 5.3 security update
- Red Hat Update Infrastructure 5 registry.redhat.io/rhui5/cds-kubernetes-rhel9, registry.redhat.io/rhui5/cds-rhel9, registry.redhat.io/rhui5/haproxy-rhel9 +2
- RHSA-2026:89758 Released 2026-10-26 · Red Hat rating Importantfirefox security, bug fix, and enhancement update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 10) firefox-153.5.0-1.el10_2
- RHSA-2026:88247 Released 2026-10-22 · Red Hat rating Importantexpat security update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 9) expat-devel-2.5.0-6.el9_8.7
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 9) expat-2.5.0-6.el9_8.7
- RHSA-2026:88248 Released 2026-10-22 · Red Hat rating Importantexpat security update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 10) expat-devel-2.7.3-1.el10_2.7
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 10) expat-2.7.3-1.el10_2.7
- RHSA-2026:85985 Released 2026-10-20 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat Hardened Images RPMs Security Update
- Red Hat Hardened Images expat-2.9.0-1.hum1@aarch64, expat-2.9.0-1.hum1@s390x, expat-2.9.0-1.hum1@src +7
- RHSA-2026:77959 Released 2026-10-07 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat Hardened Images RPMs Security Update
- Red Hat Hardened Images expat-2.8.5-1.2.hum1@aarch64, expat-2.8.5-1.2.hum1@s390x, expat-2.8.5-1.2.hum1@src +7
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Important. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat OpenShift AI (RHOAI) | Affected | — |
| Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4 | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 5 | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat Cost Management On-Premise 1 | Fixed | RHSA-2026:95365 |
| Red Hat Discovery 2 | Fixed | RHSA-2026:94802 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 10) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:88248, RHSA-2026:89758 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 9) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:88247 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 10) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:88248 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 8) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:92323 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 9) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:88247 |
| Red Hat Hardened Images | Fixed | RHSA-2026:77959, RHSA-2026:85985 |
| Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4.22 | Fixed | RHSA-2026:95346 |
| Red Hat Update Infrastructure 5 | Fixed | RHSA-2026:89907 |
Not affected: 2 products
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10
- Red Hat OpenShift AI (RHOAI)
Timeline
- 2026-10-07 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-77214
- 2026-10-07 Alias added: GHSA-8xfx-9m5m-pgcp
- 2026-10-07 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
- 2026-10-07 CVSS score added · Red Hat
- 2026-10-09 Fix available: RHSA-2026:77959 · Red Hat
- 2026-10-09 Fix available: Red Hat Hardened Images · Red Hat
- 2026-10-09 Priority changed: MEDIUM → LOW
- 2026-10-10 CISA SSVC decision points changed
- 2026-10-10 Priority changed: LOW → MEDIUM
- 2026-10-20 Fix available: RHSA-2026:85985 · Red Hat
- 2026-10-21 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
- 2026-10-23 Fix available: RHSA-2026:88247 · Red Hat
- 2026-10-23 Fix available: RHSA-2026:88248 · Red Hat
- 2026-10-23 Fix available: Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 10), Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 9), Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 10) +1 · Red Hat
- 2026-10-29 Fix available: Red Hat Update Infrastructure 5 · Red Hat
- 2026-10-30 Fix available: RHSA-2026:89907 · Red Hat
- 2026-10-30 Fix available: Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 8) · Red Hat
- 2026-10-30 Fix available: RHSA-2026:92323 · Red Hat
- 2026-10-31 Fix available: RHSA-2026:89758 · Red Hat
- 2026-10-31 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
- 2026-11-04 Fix available: RHSA-2026:94802 · Red Hat
- 2026-11-04 Fix available: Red Hat Discovery 2 · Red Hat
- 2026-11-05 Fix available: Red Hat Cost Management On-Premise 1 · Red Hat
- 2026-11-06 Fix available: RHSA-2026:95365 · Red Hat
- 2026-11-06 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
- 2026-11-07 Fix available: RHSA-2026:95346 · Red Hat
- 2026-11-07 Fix available: Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4.22 · Red Hat
References
Patch 1
Other 1
More libexpat project vulnerabilities
- TI-2022-09008 In Expat (aka libexpat) before 2.4.5, there is an integer overflow in storeRawNames. CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2026-79488 Billion laughs detection delay in libexpat enables denial of service CVSS 4.0HIGH 8.7
- TI-2022-08947 xmlparse.c in Expat (aka libexpat) before 2.4.5 allows attackers to insert… CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2021-20962 In Expat (aka libexpat) before 2.4.3, a left shift by 29 (or more) places in the… CVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
- TI-2021-21076 In doProlog in xmlparse.c in Expat (aka libexpat) before 2.4.3, an integer overflow exists for m_groupSize. CVSS 3.1HIGH 8.1
- TI-2016-00645 Expat allows context-dependent attackers to cause a denial of service (crash) or possibly… CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
Sources
- CVE-2026-77214 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-77214 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-8xfx-9m5m-pgcp · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2026-77214 · 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