CVE-2024-26462

KDC resource exhaustion via invalid UTF-8 principal

Published Feb 26, 2024 · Updated Mar 25, 2025

Memory leak in MIT Kerberos 5 1.21.2 allows local users to exhaust KDC memory by supplying a principal containing invalid UTF-8. enc_wchar_pointer initializes a dynamic k5buf before UTF-8 conversion, then returns on conversion failure without releasing the allocation. Request-based reachability remains unconfirmed, and upstream states that elevated privilege can be required to reach the encoding path.

CVSS severity5.5
Medium
EPSS probability0.44%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
Coverage for this vulnerability

See if you're affected

Explore vulnerability checks for your environment with Hinoki.

Book a demo

Summary

What happened

Memory leak in MIT Kerberos 5 1.21.2 allows local users to exhaust KDC memory by supplying a principal containing invalid UTF-8. enc_wchar_pointer initializes a dynamic k5buf before UTF-8 conversion, then returns on conversion failure without releasing the allocation. Request-based reachability remains unconfirmed, and upstream states that elevated privilege can be required to reach the encoding path.

The record

CVE
CVE-2024-26462
Published
Feb 26, 2024
Updated
Mar 25, 2025
Vendor
Unknown vendor
Product
Unknown product
Classifications
CWE-401, T1499
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Feb 26, 2024CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Mar 25, 2025Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

Compare your product and version with the public record. A matching version still requires validation against your environment.

Is a vulnerable build present?

Affected buildAffected product and version details are unavailable.

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

Affected products and versions are unavailable in this record.

Published CVSS scores

5.5NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
5.5CISA-ADPCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-401Missing Release of Memory after Effective Lifetime
T1499Endpoint Denial of Service

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

See the directory against your own environment.

Your stack

Check the software in your environment

Book a demo to see how Hinoki identifies affected software and validates exploitability in your environment.

Book a demo