CVE-2026-46253 | pstore/ram: fix buffer overflow in persistent_ram_save_old()

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: pstore/ram: fix buffer overflow in persistent_ram_save_old() persistent_ram_save_old() can be called multiple times for the same persistent_ram_zone (e.g., via ramoops_pstore_read -> ramoops_get_next_prz for PSTORE_TYPE_DMESG records). Currently, the function only allocates prz->old_log when it is NULL, but it unconditionally updates prz->old_log_size to the current buffer size and then performs memcpy_fromio() using this new size. If the buffer size has grown since the first allocation (which can happen across different kernel boot cycles), this leads to: 1. A heap buffer overflow (OOB write) in the memcpy_fromio() calls 2. A subsequent OOB read when ramoops_pstore_read() accesses the buffer using the incorrect (larger) old_log_size The KASAN splat would look similar to: BUG: KASAN: slab-out-of-bounds in ramoops_pstore_read+0x... Read of size N at addr ... by task ... The conditions are likely extremely hard to hit: 0. Crash with a ramoops write of less-than-record-max-size bytes. 1. Reboot: ramoops registers, pstore_get_records(0) reads old crash, allocates old_log with size X 2. Crash handler registered, timer started (if pstore_update_ms >= 0) 3. Oops happens (non-fatal, system continues) 4. pstore_dump() writes oops via ramoops_pstore_write() size Y (>X) 5. pstore_new_entry = 1, pstore_timer_kick() called 6. System continues running (not a panic oops) 7. Timer fires after pstore_update_ms milliseconds 8. pstore_timefunc() → schedule_work() → pstore_dowork() → pstore_get_records(1) 9. ramoops_get_next_prz() → persistent_ram_save_old() 10. buffer_size() returns Y, but old_log is X bytes 11. Y > X: memcpy_fromio() overflows heap Requirements: - a prior crash record exists that did not fill the record size (almost impossible since the crash handler writes as much as it can possibly fit into the record, capped by max record size and the kmsg buffer almost always exceeds the max record size) - pstore_update_ms >= 0 (disabled by default) - Non-fatal oops (system survives) Free and reallocate the buffer when the new size differs from the previously allocated size. This ensures old_log always has sufficient space for the data being copied.

Published: 2026-06-03 Last update: 2026-06-09 Assigner: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67 Source: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67

Conclusion & alert: CVE-2026-46253 is rated Low Risk (32.5/100): CVSS High severity, with low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.14%). Mandatory action: Monitor for updates and reassess as exploit intelligence or EPSS changes.

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-2026-46253

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% 0.14% +0.11%
2 2026-06-04 0.03%

Full EPSS history (2 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2026-46253

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
7.8 3.1 HIGH
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:L)
They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by.
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.
1.8 5.9 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2026-46253

GitHub Security Advisory for CVE-2026-46253

GHSA-rwx9-m3pj-2mv2 · Severity: high — In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: pstore/ram: fix buffer...

OS Trackers for CVE-2026-46253

vendor priority summary link
debian not yet assigned CVE-2026-46253 not yet assigned priority: Debian including 1 source packages (linux), 5 status rows across 5 suites (bookworm, bullseye, forky, sid, trixie): resolved 5. https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2026-46253
redhat medium https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-46253
suse medium CVE-2026-46253 severity moderate: SUSE including 4 source package names (kernel-default, kernel-default-base, kernel-default-devel, kernel-source), 4 product×package rows across 1 product lines (SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11 SP4 LTSS EXTREME CORE): Known Not Affected 4. https://www.suse.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-46253/
ubuntu medium CVE-2026-46253 medium priority: Ubuntu including 158 source packages (linux, linux-allwinner-5.19, …), 1422 status rows across 9 suites (bionic, focal, jammy, noble, questing, resolute, trusty, upstream, xenial): DNE 1024, ignored 173, needed 99, released 84, pending 29, not-affected 10, needs-triage 3. https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2026-46253

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2026-46253

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
linux linux_kernel >= 3.5.1, < 5.10.252 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel >= 5.11, < 5.15.202 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel >= 5.16, < 6.1.165 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel >= 6.2, < 6.6.128 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel >= 6.7, < 6.12.75 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel >= 6.13, < 6.18.14 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel >= 6.19, < 6.19.4 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 3.5 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:3.5:-:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 3.5 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:3.5:rc4:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 3.5 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:3.5:rc5:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 3.5 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:3.5:rc6:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 3.5 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:3.5:rc7:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2026-46253

cvelogic Threat Intelligence