CVE-2026-12969
MediumCVSS 5.3Exploitation Probability (EPSS)
Low risk15th percentile - higher than 15% of all known CVEs
Summary
An out-of-bounds read vulnerability exists in dnsmasq's find_soa() function in src/rfc1035.c. When parsing NS section records, extract_name() is called with extrabytes=0, failing to validate that 10 additional bytes exist for fixed-length DNS record fields. A remote attacker controlling a DNS zone can exploit this via a crafted NXDOMAIN response to cause a 10-byte heap out-of-bounds read, potentially accessing stale data from prior transactions.
Risk Assessment
The risk involves potential leakage of sensitive heap memory data, which could expose information about other DNS queries or system configuration. An attacker may also destabilize the dnsmasq server.
Recommendation
Immediately update dnsmasq to the latest version containing the fix for CVE-2026-12969. If an update is not possible, restrict DNS server access to trusted clients only.
Other vulnerabilities in dnsmasq
See all- CVE-2017-14496High
An integer underflow in the add_pseudoheader function in dnsmasq before version 2.78 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service via a crafted DNS request when the --add-mac, --add-cpe-id, or --add-subnet option is specified.
- CVE-2017-14495High
A memory leak in dnsmasq before version 2.78 occurs when the --add-mac, --add-cpe-id, or --add-subnet option is specified. This allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service through DNS response creation manipulation.
- CVE-2017-13704High
In dnsmasq before version 2.78, if the DNS packet size does not match the expected size, the size parameter in a memset call gets a negative value. As it is an unsigned value, memset ends up writing up to 0xffffffff zeros, causing dnsmasq to crash.
- CVE-2015-8899High
Dnsmasq before 2.76 allows remote servers to cause a denial of service (crash) via a reply with an empty DNS address that has an (1) A or (2) AAAA record defined locally.
- CVE-2026-4891Medium
A heap-based out-of-bounds read vulnerability in the DNSSEC validation of dnsmasq allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service via a crafted DNS packet.
- CVE-2026-4890High
The DNSSEC validation in dnsmasq has a denial of service (DoS) vulnerability. A remote attacker can send a crafted DNS packet, causing the service to crash.
- CVE-2017-14491Critical
Heap-based buffer overflow in dnsmasq before 2.78 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (crash) or execute arbitrary code via a crafted DNS response.
- CVE-2017-14493Critical
A stack-based buffer overflow in dnsmasq before version 2.78 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (crash) or execute arbitrary code via a crafted DHCPv6 request.
- CVE-2017-14492Critical
Heap-based buffer overflow in dnsmasq before version 2.78 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (crash) or execute arbitrary code via a crafted IPv6 router advertisement request.
- CVE-2026-13002Medium
A flow in the dnssec.c library causes an infinite loop in the dnsmasq service. An attacker who controls any DNSSEC-signed zone can hang the dnsmasq process with a single crafted response, killing all DNS resolution for its clients.
Original NVD description (English source)
An out-of-bounds read vulnerability exists in dnsmasq's find_soa() function in src/rfc1035.c. When parsing NS section records, extract_name() is called with extrabytes=0, failing to validate that 10 additional bytes exist for fixed-length DNS record fields. A remote attacker controlling a DNS zone can exploit this via a crafted NXDOMAIN response to cause a 10-byte heap out-of-bounds read, potentially accessing stale data from prior transactions.