Kernel memory disclosure and crash via unaligned reads
Published May 27, 2026 · Updated May 27, 2026
Unaligned memory access in Linux Kernel AppArmor allows local users to disclose kernel memory or crash the system via a policy blob. The unpack_table UNPACK_ARRAY path treats possibly unaligned policy bytes as 16- or 32-bit elements and performs typed reads instead of unaligned-safe accesses. Exploitation requires low-privileged local access and attacker-controlled policy data; the bounded consequences are memory disclosure and a system crash.
Summary
What happened
Unaligned memory access in Linux Kernel AppArmor allows local users to disclose kernel memory or crash the system via a policy blob. The unpack_table UNPACK_ARRAY path treats possibly unaligned policy bytes as 16- or 32-bit elements and performs typed reads instead of unaligned-safe accesses. Exploitation requires low-privileged local access and attacker-controlled policy data; the bounded consequences are memory disclosure and a system crash.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-45893
- Published
- May 27, 2026
- Updated
- May 27, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux Kernel
- Classifications
- CWE-125, T1499.004
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- May 27, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- May 27, 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=4.11
- Affected versionversion=e6e8bf418850d7958311a96ccfb594f2bcc8313e <226c3b10aab23f73b03c47e7773107de56ba3a4e
- Affected versionversion=e6e8bf418850d7958311a96ccfb594f2bcc8313e <47e351dfef60ab0e3285133556e1a9c7f646a969
- Affected versionversion=e6e8bf418850d7958311a96ccfb594f2bcc8313e <6fc367bfd4c8886e6b1742aabbd1c0bdc310db3a
- Affected versionversion=e6e8bf418850d7958311a96ccfb594f2bcc8313e <e027999049c493fb728ead5a90db76942181a935
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
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Attacks
What attackers are doing with it
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Public exploit references
No public exploit references are available in this record.
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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