CVE-2026-4897Public exploit

System memory exhaustion via unbounded stdin read

Published Mar 26, 2026 · Updated Mar 26, 2026

Denial of service in Red Hat polkit allows local users to exhaust system memory through polkit-agent-helper-1 standard input. The read_cookie function calls getline on the cookie stream without a length cap and performs the non-TTY check only after allocation. Any local user can execute the mode-04755 helper through a pipe; systems using only the socket-activated helper are not exposed.

CVSS severity5.5
Medium
EPSS probability0.15%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Denial of service in Red Hat polkit allows local users to exhaust system memory through polkit-agent-helper-1 standard input. The read_cookie function calls getline on the cookie stream without a length cap and performs the non-TTY check only after allocation. Any local user can execute the mode-04755 helper through a pipe; systems using only the socket-activated helper are not exposed.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-4897
Published
Mar 26, 2026
Updated
Mar 26, 2026
Vendor
389 Directory Server
Product
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
Classifications
CWE-770, T1499
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Mar 26, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Mar 26, 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?

Affected versions are unavailable in this record. Check the vendor advisory for version and patch details.

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

389 Directory Server · Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6Affected versions are unavailable in this record.
389 Directory Server · Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10Affected versions are unavailable in this record.
389 Directory Server · Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7Affected versions are unavailable in this record.
389 Directory Server · Red Hat OpenShift Container PlatformAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
389 Directory Server · Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9Affected versions are unavailable in this record.
389 Directory Server · Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8Affected versions are unavailable in this record.

Published CVSS scores

5.5Red HatCVSS: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 exploitPublished

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-770Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling
T1499Endpoint Denial of Service

Public exploit references

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

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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