CVE-2026-45257
HIGHDescription
The KTLS receive path decrypted each record in place, assuming that the mbufs holding received data were anonymous and safe to modify. This assumption does not hold for data placed on a socket by sendfile(2), which can reference file-backed memory directly through non-anonymous M_EXTPG pages or EXT_SFBUF mbufs. When the sender transmits such data over a loopback connection without enabling KTLS on the transmit side, the file-backed mbufs reach the receiver's decryption path unchanged. Decrypting a record in place then overwrites the backing file's page cache instead of a private copy of the data. An unprivileged local user who can read a file can overwrite its contents with data of their choosing by sending the file over a loopback connection on which they have enabled KTLS receive. The write modifies the page cache directly, so it bypasses file flags such as schg and is written back to disk. By overwriting a setuid binary or other trusted file, a local user can escalate privileges, potentially gaining full control of the affected system.
How to fix
No published remediation has been found for this vulnerability's affected products yet.
Mitigation guidance may be in the linked vendor advisories in the References section below.
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CVSS v3 Vector
Exploitability
Impact
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Exploit Intelligence
Low risk: more likely to be exploited than 5% of all known CVEs.
References
Related Vulnerabilities
Other CWE-123 vulnerabilities, ordered by exploit likelihood. View all
| CVE | Severity | CVSS | EPSS | Exploited | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2026-43284 | High | 7.8 | 93% | - | Fix |
| CVE-2026-43500 | High | 7.8 | 93% | - | Fix |
| CVE-2026-46300 | High | 7.8 | 7.0% | - | Fix |
| CVE-2015-8271 | Critical | 9.8 | 5.9% | - | Fix |
| CVE-2017-10994 | High | 7.3 | 4.9% | - | - |
| CVE-2025-55298 | High | 7.5 | 4.4% | - | Fix |
Common questions
How do I fix CVE-2026-45257?
No published fix for CVE-2026-45257 has been found yet. Check the linked vendor advisories for guidance as it becomes available.
Is CVE-2026-45257 being actively exploited?
Not that we know of. CVE-2026-45257 is not in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog. Its EPSS score of 0.15% is the estimated probability that it will be exploited in the next 30 days. That is higher than 5% of all scored CVEs.
How severe is CVE-2026-45257?
CVE-2026-45257 has a CVSS v3 base score of 7.8, rated high. CVSS rates the technical impact if the vulnerability is exploited, not how likely that is, so weigh it alongside the exploit-prediction score when you decide what to patch first.
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This product uses NVD data but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. EPSS scores courtesy of FIRST.org (https://www.first.org/epss). Source: CISA KEV Catalog. Data as of 2026-06-27.