Heap corruption and crashes via VMDK overflow
Published Jul 21, 2026 · Updated Jul 21, 2026
Heap overflow in Oracle VM VirtualBox 7.2.12 allows local users to corrupt heap memory and crash processes through a malicious VMDK image. The vmdkFileInflateSync function checks an attacker-controlled compressed-grain size against the uncompressed grain size instead of the destination buffer, then reads as many as 65,536 bytes past a 66,048-byte allocation. Triggering the overwrite requires another person to import or process the crafted image; demonstrated impact is process termination and controlled heap corruption, not code execution.
Summary
What happened
Heap overflow in Oracle VM VirtualBox 7.2.12 allows local users to corrupt heap memory and crash processes through a malicious VMDK image. The vmdkFileInflateSync function checks an attacker-controlled compressed-grain size against the uncompressed grain size instead of the destination buffer, then reads as many as 65,536 bytes past a 66,048-byte allocation. Triggering the overwrite requires another person to import or process the crafted image; demonstrated impact is process termination and controlled heap corruption, not code execution.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-60161
- Published
- Jul 21, 2026
- Updated
- Jul 21, 2026
- Vendor
- Oracle
- Product
- Oracle VM VirtualBox
- Classifications
- CWE-787, CWE-362, T1204.002
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Jul 21, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Jul 21, 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?
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- Affected versionversion=7.2.12
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.
Attacks
What attackers are doing with it
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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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