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Netatalk EUVDEUVD-2026-31243

| CVE-2026-44057 LOW
Dead Code (CWE-561)
2026-05-21 securin GHSA-w95q-jvf4-8fvp
3.1
CVSS 3.1 · Vendor: securin
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Attack ChainAIDerived

Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain

  1. Access
    Authenticate to Netatalk AFP service
  2. Exploit
    Craft malformed Spotlight RPC request targeting unmarshaller
  3. Execution
    Bypass dead bounds check (unreachable validation)
  4. Impact
    Extract limited information from RPC response

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
Exploitation Conditions

Exploitation requires the attacker to hold valid credentials providing at least low-privilege access to the Netatalk service (confirmed by CVSS PR:L) - anonymous or unauthenticated exploitation is not possible. The Spotlight RPC component must be active and reachable on the target Netatalk instance; deployments where Spotlight integration is disabled or the AFP port is firewalled from the attacker are not exploitable. High attack complexity (AC:H per CVSS) is an explicit prerequisite, meaning the attacker cannot trivially send a generic malformed packet - precise crafting of the RPC request structure is required. The vulnerability is strictly limited to confidentiality impact: an attacker cannot modify data, crash the service, or escalate privileges. Environments where all Netatalk users are fully trusted and the service is not exposed beyond a controlled LAN segment face negligible realistic risk despite the network-reachable attack vector.

Impact

The CVSS 3.1 score of 3.1 accurately characterizes this as a low-severity issue. The vector (AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N) shows network reachability but imposes two meaningful barriers: high attack complexity (AC:H), indicating the exploit requires non-trivial precision in RPC payload crafting or timing, and authentication (PR:L), meaning anonymous exploitation is not possible. The impact is strictly bounded to low confidentiality disclosure with no integrity or availability consequence. No EPSS data was provided in available intelligence, so exploitation probability cannot be quantified independently. The vulnerability is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog, and no public exploit code has been identified, making opportunistic mass exploitation unlikely. For organizations running Netatalk in environments where AFP is internet-exposed or accessible to untrusted authenticated users, the risk is higher than the raw score implies - but for internal-only deployments with controlled user bases, this is a low-priority finding. The reporter (Securin) flagged this as an information disclosure class issue consistent with the CVSS impact ratings.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

An authenticated user on a network with access to a Netatalk AFP server sends a specially crafted Spotlight RPC search request designed to probe unmarshaller behavior where the dead bounds check would normally gate processing. Because the bounds validation is unreachable dead code, the unmarshaller processes the malformed request without the intended constraint, potentially leaking limited information from RPC processing context or memory. No public exploit code exists at time of analysis, and the AC:H CVSS component indicates the attacker must invest significant effort in payload construction to reliably trigger the information disclosure.

Monitor Track and reassess. Why: LOW severity (CVSS 0.1-3.9).
No patch listed yet 0.0% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAIv1 – May 21, 2026

Information disclosure in Netatalk 3.0.0 through 4.4.2 stems from a dead bounds check (CWE-561) in the Spotlight RPC unmarshaller - code intended to enforce input boundaries is logically unreachable, leaving RPC input processing without effective size validation. Remote attackers who hold at least low-level credentials can submit crafted Spotlight RPC requests to extract limited confidential information from the service. No public exploit has been identified at time of analysis, and the CVSS 3.1 score correctly reflects the constrained real-world impact: high attack complexity, authentication required, and confidentiality-only impact with no integrity or availability consequence.

RemediationAI

Consult the vendor advisory at https://netatalk.io/security/CVE-2026-44057 for the official patch; an exact fixed version number was not independently confirmed in the available intelligence data, so administrators should check the advisory directly for the minimum safe version. As a compensating control while patching is planned, disable Spotlight RPC functionality in Netatalk if macOS Spotlight search integration over network shares is not operationally required - this eliminates the vulnerable code path entirely, with the trade-off of losing macOS Finder search capability against AFP shares. Additionally, restrict AFP service access (TCP port 548 and associated Spotlight RPC ports) at the network perimeter to only authorized, trusted hosts and authenticated user accounts, reducing exposure to the PR:L authentication threshold. Monitoring for anomalous or high-volume Spotlight RPC request patterns may help detect exploitation attempts given the AC:H requirement for crafted payloads.

Affected VersionsENISA

Netatalk 3.0.0 ≤4.4.2

Affected Packages

euvd netatalk no fix

Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)

Affects your stack

Affects 1 package in euvd

Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.

Technical ContextAI · show details

Netatalk is an open-source implementation of the Apple Filing Protocol (AFP) for Unix-like systems, providing macOS-compatible file sharing including Spotlight-based remote search via its RPC subsystem. The Spotlight RPC unmarshaller is responsible for parsing and validating incoming search requests from macOS clients. CWE-561 (Dead Code) identifies the root cause: bounds-checking logic exists in the source code but sits behind a conditional that can never evaluate to true given prior code paths, rendering the check permanently unreachable at runtime. The practical result is that the unmarshaller processes attacker-supplied RPC data without the intended boundary enforcement. The affected CPE is cpe:2.3:a:netatalk:netatalk:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* covering the version range 3.0.0 through 4.4.2 as confirmed by ENISA EUVD-2026-31243.

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Severity by source

Vendor (securin) PRIMARY 3.1 LOW
AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N

Primary rating from Vendor (securin) · only source for this CVE.

CVSS VectorVendor: securin

Attack Vector
Network
Attack Complexity
High
Privileges Required
Low
User Interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
None
Availability
None

DescriptionCVE.org

A dead bounds check in the Spotlight RPC unmarshaller in Netatalk 3.0.0 through 4.4.2 results in an unreachable code path that provides no effective bounds protection, which may allow a remote authenticated attacker to obtain limited information via crafted Spotlight RPC requests.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.0%
Top 88% exploitable
Data Quality
5 sources
Confidence: Medium

How this decision was reached

The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.

SignalValue
Severity LOW
CISA KEV No
Public POC No
EPSS 0.0%
Patch available No
Active threat No
Deciding rule
LOW severity (CVSS 0.1-3.9)
What every action level means
Emergency Immediate action required. Criteria: CRITICAL + in CISA KEV (actively exploited) without patch, OR CRITICAL + EPSS > 30% without patch, OR CRITICAL + active threat signals without patch.
Act Now Prioritize within 24-48h. Criteria: in KEV with patch available, OR CRITICAL + public POC, OR HIGH + EPSS > 10%, OR CRITICAL + active threat, OR any CRITICAL severity.
This Week Schedule remediation this week. Criteria: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9). Patch within normal change window.
This Month Plan within 30 days. Criteria: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9), lower exploitation probability. Include in regular patch cycle.
Monitor Track and reassess. Criteria: LOW severity (CVSS 0.1-3.9), minimal exploitation risk. No immediate action needed.

SSVC AssessmentENISA

SSVC Decision· derived
Defer
Exploitation
None
System Exposure· derived
Open
Automatable
No
Human Impact· derived
Low
Technical Impact
Partial

Priority Score

16
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: 0
CVSS: +16
PoC: 0
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

Information disclosure occurs when an application unintentionally exposes sensitive data that aids attackers in reconnaissance or directly compromises security.

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