CVE-2026-2005 | PostgreSQL pgcrypto heap buffer overflow executes arbitrary code

Heap buffer overflow in PostgreSQL pgcrypto allows a ciphertext provider to execute arbitrary code as the operating system user running the database. Versions before PostgreSQL 18.2, 17.8, 16.12, 15.16, and 14.21 are affected.

Published: 2026-02-12 Last update: 2026-02-20 Assigner: f86ef6dc-4d3a-42ad-8f28-e6d5547a5007 Source: f86ef6dc-4d3a-42ad-8f28-e6d5547a5007
NVD Status：Analyzed，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2026-2005 is rated Moderate Risk (52.4/100): CVSS High severity, with low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.68%). Review affected assets and schedule remediation.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2026-2005

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2026-06-15 0.03% 0.68% +0.65%
2 2026-03-21 0.06% 0.03% -0.03%
3 2026-02-13 — 0.06% —

Full EPSS history (3 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2026-2005

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
8.8 3.1 HIGH
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:L)
A normal user session is enough; they don’t have to be admin.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
 2.8 5.9 f86ef6dc-4d3a-42ad-8f28-e6d5547a5007

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2026-2005

OS Trackers for CVE-2026-2005

vendor priority summary link
alpine — CVE-2026-2005: 5 source package rows (postgresql, postgresql15, postgresql16, postgresql17, postgresql18); 12 state rows across 7 repos (3.20-main, 3.21-main, 3.22-main, 3.23-community, 3.23-main, edge-community, edge-main); fixed 11, open 1. https://security.alpinelinux.org/vuln/CVE-2026-2005
debian not yet assigned CVE-2026-2005 not yet assigned priority: Debian including 4 source packages (postgresql-13, postgresql-15, postgresql-17, postgresql-18), 5 status rows across 5 suites (bookworm, bullseye, forky, sid, trixie): resolved 5. https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2026-2005
redhat high — https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-2005
suse high CVE-2026-2005 severity important: SUSE including 346 source package names (2.2.1-5.40:grub2-2.12-slfo.1.1_2.1, 2.2.1-5.40:grub2-i386-pc-2.12-slfo.1.1_2.1, …), 1251 product×package rows across 73 product lines (Container suse/manager/5.0/x86_64/server, Container suse/manager/5.0/x86_64/server-migration-14-16, … (73 product lines)): Fixed 1204, First Fixed 47. https://www.suse.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-2005/
ubuntu medium CVE-2026-2005 medium priority: Ubuntu including 8 source packages (postgresql-10, postgresql-12, …), 36 status rows across 8 suites (bionic, focal, jammy, noble, questing, trusty, upstream, xenial): DNE 21, needs-triage 7, ignored 4, released 3, deferred 1. https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2026-2005

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2026-2005

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
postgresql postgresql >= 14.0, < 14.21 cpe:2.3:a:postgresql:postgresql:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
postgresql postgresql >= 15.0, < 15.16 cpe:2.3:a:postgresql:postgresql:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
postgresql postgresql >= 16.0, < 16.12 cpe:2.3:a:postgresql:postgresql:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
postgresql postgresql >= 17.0, < 17.8 cpe:2.3:a:postgresql:postgresql:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
postgresql postgresql >= 18.0, < 18.2 cpe:2.3:a:postgresql:postgresql:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2026-2005

cvelogic Threat Intelligence