FreeRDP NULL pointer dereference lets ARM gateway crash client
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- Passive
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Attack requirements
- Present
- Impact type
- Denial of service
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- None · None · High
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 1 without a fix
Attack profile from CVSS 4.0 · CNA. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat. Impact type from CWE-476.
Summary
FreeRDP 3.0.0-beta4 before 3.32.0 contains a NULL pointer dereference in arm_handle_request_ok (CWE-476). When an ARM endpoint returns an empty HTTP 200 body, the client passes a NULL pointer to strnlen and crashes. An attacker who controls the configured ARM gateway can cause this crash. A proof-of-concept exploit is linked in the references.
Written with Claude Haiku 5.5 from the sources below · 2026-10-29
Description from the CNA
FreeRDP 3.0.0-beta4 before 3.32.0 contains a NULL pointer dereference in arm_handle_request_ok when an ARM endpoint returns an empty HTTP 200 body. Attackers controlling the configured ARM gateway can return a zero-length body to pass NULL to strnlen and crash the connecting client.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- Poc
- 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FreeRDP | FreeRDP | 3.0.0-beta4 to before 3.32.0 | 3.32.0 | Patch available | CNA |
- FreeRDP VendorFreeRDP Affected 3.0.0-beta4 to before 3.32.0 Fixed in 3.32.0 Patch available CNA
Remediation
Upgrade FreeRDP to version 3.32.0. The sources list no fixed version for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10.
Written with Claude Haiku 5.5 from the sources below · 2026-10-29
- Fix · CNA FreeRDP (FreeRDP) Fixed in 3.32.0
Fixed in the same release
Records fixed by the same vendor advisory or release, as the CNA lists them.
- Release ·
FreeRDP 3.32.0
20 records Highest priority Priority HIGH 1 HIGH, 15 MEDIUM, 4 LOW
Other records, highest priority first
- TI-2026-71718 Heap buffer over-read in FreeRDP proxy DRDYNVC channel name handlingPriority HIGH 70
- TI-2026-71714 Unbounded memory allocation in FreeRDP drive redirection readsPriority MEDIUM 64
- TI-2026-71713 Reachable assertion in FreeRDP lets a malicious server crash clientsPriority MEDIUM 64
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
Not affected: 4 products
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9
Timeline
- 2026-10-13 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-109679
- 2026-10-13 Alias added: GHSA-w7w2-8hr6-7gcf
- 2026-10-14 Priority changed: MEDIUM → LOW
- 2026-10-18 CISA SSVC decision points changed
- 2026-10-18 Priority changed: LOW → MEDIUM
- 2026-10-21 CVSS score added · NVD
- 2026-10-29 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
- 2026-10-29 CVSS score added · Red Hat
References
More Freerdp vulnerabilities
- TI-2026-85092 Use-after-free in FreeRDP rdpgfx channel close handling CVSS 4.0CRITICAL 9.3
- TI-2026-85091 Out-of-bounds write in FreeRDP proxy via bitmap cache v2 capability CVSS 4.0CRITICAL 9.3
- TI-2026-24435 FreeRDP has a `size_t` underflow in ADPCM decoder leads to heap-buffer-overflow write CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2023-21373 Out-Of-Bounds Write in FreeRDP CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2022-08692 Server side NTLM does not properly check parameters in FreeRDP CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.1
- TI-2023-21374 Out-Of-Bounds Read in FreeRDP CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.1
Sources
- CVE-2026-109679 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-109679 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-w7w2-8hr6-7gcf · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2026-109679 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
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