{"cve":"CVE-2026-19548","nvd":{"published":"2026-08-12T16:16:55.777","modified":"2026-10-14T03:17:23.293","status":"Modified","description":"Multiple Use-After-Free vulnerabilities were found in the add_archive_element function in ld/ldmain.c of the GNU linker (ld), a component of binutils. The root cause is that plugin_maybe_claim() in ld/plugin.c frees the original BFD object via bfd_close/_bfd_delete_bfd when entry->the_bfd->my_archive == NULL, but the caller retains both the original abfd parameter and a shallow copy (orig_input.the_bfd) as dangling pointers. These dangling pointers are subsequently dereferenced at three distinct locations in add_archive_element:\n\n1. Line ~1442: accessing abfd->my_archive via bfd_usrdata(abfd->my_archive)\n2. Line ~1493: multiple accesses to abfd and abfd->my_archive in a conditional check and bfd_get_filename call\n3. Line ~1525: dereferencing the shallow copy orig_input.the_bfd->my_archive in trace/verbose logging\n\nThe vulnerability is triggered when LTO plugins are active (link_info.lto_plugin_active is true) and the input object has abfd->my_archive == NULL, which is a valid state for standalone object files. Red Hat builds binutils with --enable-plugins and --enable-lto, confirming the vulnerable code path is compiled in and reachable.\n\nAn attacker who can supply a crafted object or archive file to a build process using LTO-enabled linking could exploit this flaw to cause a denial of service (linker crash via segmentation fault). Arbitrary code execution is theoretically possible through heap manipulation but is substantially mitigated by hardening measures including stack protector, FORTIFY_SOURCE, ASLR, and PIE.\n\nThe attack surface is limited to build-time environments — the linker is a development tool not exposed in production runtime. The most realistic exploitation scenario is a supply chain attack introducing a crafted object file as a build dependency in CI/CD pipelines or development environments.","cvss_v4":null,"cvss_v3":{"version":"3.1","vector":"CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H","score":5.5},"cwes":["CWE-416"],"references":["https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:82359","https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-19548","https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2507832"],"products":["redhat:enterprise_linux","redhat:hardened_images","redhat:openshift_container_platform"],"source":"nvd","synced_at":"2026-10-19T22:48:17.459049833+00:00"},"epss":{"cve":"CVE-2026-19548","score":0.00167,"percentile":0.05936,"date":"2026-10-25"},"kev":null,"osv":[],"attribution":["This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD.","EPSS scores: FIRST Exploit Prediction Scoring System, https://www.first.org/epss","Known exploited vulnerabilities: CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog, https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog","Package advisories: OSV (https://osv.dev), from the GitHub Advisory Database, PyPA, Go, RustSec and other ecosystem databases, under CC-BY 4.0 or CC0","CVE records: the CVE Program's CVE List (https://www.cve.org), under its terms of use (https://www.cve.org/Legal/TermsOfUse). CVE is a registered trademark of The MITRE Corporation; this product is not affiliated with the CVE Program."]}