Heap corruption via undersized regex cache
Published Aug 9, 2026 · Updated Aug 9, 2026
Out-of-bounds access in Perl 5.45.1 and earlier allows local users to crash a process or corrupt heap memory during regex matching. S_regmatch multiplies the subject length plus one by the number of participating WHILEM nodes in a signed 32-bit counter without checking positive overflow, then allocates and indexes the cache using the wrapped count. Exploitation requires a caller to match an attacker-controlled subject of roughly 286 MB against a pattern with many participating nodes; the undersized cache permits out-of-bounds reads and writes.
Summary
What happened
Out-of-bounds access in Perl 5.45.1 and earlier allows local users to crash a process or corrupt heap memory during regex matching. S_regmatch multiplies the subject length plus one by the number of participating WHILEM nodes in a signed 32-bit counter without checking positive overflow, then allocates and indexes the cache using the wrapped count. Exploitation requires a caller to match an attacker-controlled subject of roughly 286 MB against a pattern with many participating nodes; the undersized cache permits out-of-bounds reads and writes.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-15534
- Published
- Aug 9, 2026
- Updated
- Aug 9, 2026
- Vendor
- The Perl Foundation
- Product
- Perl
- Classifications
- CWE-787, CWE-125, CWE-190
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Aug 9, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Aug 9, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
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Is a vulnerable build present?
Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.
- Affected versionversion=0 <=5.45.1
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.
Attacks
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Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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