Integer overflow in Red Hat Directory Server 11

CVE-2026-18355

A heap buffer overflow flaw was found in the SASL I/O layer of 389 Directory Server (389-ds-base). In sasl_io_start_packet(), the wrapped-record length read from the wire is validated only against an upper bound. A small wire length (0, 1, or 2) produces an encrypted_buffer_count below the already-consumed encrypted_buffer_offset, causing an unsigned subtraction underflow in sasl_io_read_packet(). PR_Recv is then requested to read approximately 4 GiB into a 1024-byte heap buffer, resulting in a heap buffer overflow with attacker-controlled content. After a successful SASL bind with integrity protection (SSF > 0), a remote authenticated attacker can cause a denial of service or potentially achieve remote code execution. This flaw is distinct from CVE-2026-11774, whose fix only guards against upper-bound overflow.

Published · last modified .

CVSS v3 metric

CVSS v3 base score 7.5 (High). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.

EPSS exploit prediction

EPSS: 0.008 (57.3th percentile), scored .

Very low probability of exploitation in the next 30 days; routine patching cadence is appropriate. 57th percentile — 57.3% of CVEs in the catalogue have a lower EPSS than this one. How to read EPSS.

EPSS trend (30 days)EPSS over the last 30 days for CVE-2026-18355: held from 0.008 to 0.008.

EPSS over last 30 days · oldest: 0.008 · newest: 0.008 · change: 0.000

Affected products

Weakness classification (CWE)

References

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2026-18355?
CVE-2026-18355 is a high-severity vulnerability in Red Hat Directory Server 11, classified under Integer Underflow. CVSS score: 7.5/10. Published 2026-09-07.
How severe is CVE-2026-18355?
High severity. CVSS v3 base score is 7.5 out of 10.