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FreeBSD EUVDEUVD-2026-62365

| CVE-2026-58088 HIGH
Race Condition (CWE-362)
2026-08-19 freebsd GHSA-7h55-5jqw-fvcq
7.4
CVSS 3.1 · Vendor: freebsd
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Attack ChainAIDerived

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

  1. Recon
    Gain unprivileged local shell access
  2. Delivery
    Create rfork(2) sibling sharing parent VM map
  3. Exploit
    Trigger core dump in parent process
  4. Install
    Sibling mutates shared VM map between kernel count and populate passes
  5. C2
    Kernel writes program headers past heap buffer end
  6. Execute
    Corrupt adjacent kernel heap structures
  7. Impact
    Escalate privileges to root

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A06:2025 - Insecure Design
ASVS 5.0
V15 - Secure Coding and Architecture Concurrency control, locking
MITRE ATT&CK

1 technique across 1 tactic: Privilege Escalation

The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up.

Exploitation Conditions

Exploitation requires: (1) an unprivileged local account with interactive shell access on the target FreeBSD system - remote unauthenticated exploitation is not possible given AV:L; (2) the ability to call rfork(2) to create a process sharing the parent's VM map, which is permitted to unprivileged users by default on FreeBSD and requires no special configuration; (3) the ability to trigger a core dump in the shared-address-space process, achievable by sending SIGABRT, SIGSEGV, or similar signals; (4) successfully timing a VM map mutation between the kernel's two passes over the map, which is a high-complexity (AC:H) race and may require many attempts. Exploitation is limited to the affected patch levels (14.4-RELEASE <p8, 15.0-RELEASE <p12, 15.1-RELEASE <p2). Systems with no untrusted local users, where core dumps are disabled, or where rfork(2) is policy-restricted have substantially reduced exposure.

Impact

The CVSS 3.1 vector AV:L/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H accurately characterizes a locally-scoped but potentially severe vulnerability. AV:L correctly reflects that exploitation requires an existing shell session on the target host; there is no remote attack surface. AC:H is also appropriate - reliably winning a kernel-level race condition between two VM map passes is non-trivial and typically requires repeated attempts and favorable scheduling conditions. PR:N is notable: no elevated privileges are required beyond a standard local user account, since rfork(2) is available to unprivileged processes by default on FreeBSD. The full C:H/I:H/A:H impact triad reflects that a successful kernel heap overflow could overwrite adjacent kernel structures and yield root-equivalent access. EPSS data was not provided in the source intelligence, limiting probabilistic exploitation probability assessment. KEV status is negative and no POC is publicly known, which collectively suggest this has not yet been broadly weaponized. Multi-user FreeBSD deployments - any shared hosting environment, build server, or interactive shell system where untrusted local accounts exist - carry the highest real-world exposure. Single-user workstations, containers without shell access, and systems behind strict network access controls face much lower practical risk, since the race condition cannot be triggered remotely.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

An unprivileged attacker with a local shell account calls rfork(2) to create a sibling process sharing the parent's VM map, then induces a core dump in the parent via a signal such as SIGABRT while the sibling simultaneously and rapidly modifies the shared VM map - adding or removing entries. If the sibling's map mutation lands between the kernel's count pass and population pass, the kernel writes program headers past the end of the allocated heap buffer. Repeated timing attempts increase the probability of winning the race, and a successful heap overflow can overwrite adjacent kernel heap metadata or function pointers to escalate to root.

This Week Schedule remediation this week. Why: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9).
No patch listed yet 0.1% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAIv1 – Aug 19, 2026

FreeBSD's ELF core dump subsystem contains a TOCTOU race condition that allows an unprivileged local user sharing an address space via rfork(2) to trigger a kernel heap out-of-bounds write, potentially escalating privileges to root. Affected releases are FreeBSD 14.4-RELEASE prior to p8, 15.0-RELEASE prior to p12, and 15.1-RELEASE prior to p2, as confirmed in FreeBSD Security Advisory FreeBSD-SA-26:55.elf. No public exploit code has been identified at time of analysis, and this vulnerability is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

RemediationAI

Apply the vendor-released patches to bring FreeBSD 14.4-RELEASE to patch level p8 or later, FreeBSD 15.0-RELEASE to p12 or later, and FreeBSD 15.1-RELEASE to p2 or later, as documented in FreeBSD Security Advisory FreeBSD-SA-26:55.elf at https://security.freebsd.org/advisories/FreeBSD-SA-26:55.elf.asc. If immediate patching is not feasible, disabling system-wide core dumps via 'sysctl kern.coredump=0' (and setting it persistently in /etc/sysctl.conf) eliminates the vulnerable code path entirely, at the cost of losing diagnostic core files for legitimate crash analysis. A second option is to restrict untrusted local user accounts entirely - removing interactive shell access for non-administrative users prevents exploitation since local presence is a hard prerequisite; this has significant operational impact on multi-user systems. Attempting to restrict rfork(2) via MAC framework policy is a more targeted control but may break applications that legitimately depend on shared address-space semantics. Patching remains the preferred and lowest-side-effect remediation.

Affected VersionsENISA

FreeBSD 14.4-RELEASE <p8
FreeBSD 15.1-RELEASE <p2
FreeBSD 15.0-RELEASE <p12

Affects your stack

Find out whether the stacks and servers you run are on an affected version.

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

Technical ContextAI · show details

The vulnerability (CWE-362: Concurrent Execution Using Shared Resource with Improper Synchronization) resides in the FreeBSD kernel's ELF core dump path. The code performs two sequential passes over the process VM map: the first pass counts dumpable entries to determine the required buffer size for program headers, and the second pass populates that buffer. FreeBSD's rfork(2) system call permits two processes to share the same underlying VM map object. A sibling process created via rfork(2) can race between these two passes - inserting or modifying VM map entries after the count is finalized but before population completes - causing the kernel to write program headers beyond the allocated heap buffer boundary. This is a classic heap out-of-bounds write in kernel space. The affected product is identified by CPE cpe:2.3:a:freebsd:freebsd:* covering the FreeBSD operating system across the affected release series.

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  • Exploit and PoC references, threat intelligence from 22 sources

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Severity by source

Vendor (freebsd) PRIMARY 7.4 HIGH
AV:L/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
vuln.today AI 7.4 HIGH

AV:L because exploitation requires local shell presence; AC:H for the kernel race window timing; PR:N since rfork(2) is available to any unprivileged user by default.

3.1 AV:L/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
4.0 AV:L/AC:H/AT:P/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N

Primary rating from Vendor (freebsd).

CVSS VectorVendor: freebsd

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

Lifecycle Timeline

2
CVE Published
Aug 19, 2026 - 07:52 cve.org
UNKNOWN (no severity yet)
CVE Published
Aug 19, 2026 - 07:52 cve.org
HIGH 7.4

DescriptionCVE.org

The ELF core dump code counted the number of dumpable VM map entries, allocated a buffer for the corresponding program headers, then iterated over the map a second time to populate them. A process sharing the address space via rfork(2) can mutate the map between the two passes, causing the second pass to write program headers past the end of the buffer.

An unprivileged local user sharing an address space with a process that dumps core can trigger an out-of-bounds write on the kernel heap, potentially leading to privilege escalation.

Executive ViewAI

Why It Matters

A local privilege escalation vulnerability (CVE-2026-58088, CVSS 7.4) in FreeBSD's ELF core dump subsystem allows unprivileged users with local system access to escalate to root. No public exploit identified at time of analysis. Organizations running affected FreeBSD releases face significant risk; any user account compromise could lead to full system takeover.

Business Impact: High
Compensating Controls

Apply vendor patch.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.1%
Top 96% exploitable
Prevalence
Low
FreeBSD used in niche server, appliance, and BSD-specific deployments.
Social Media
1
Sightings
Data Quality
6 sources
Confidence: High

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 HIGH
CISA KEV No
Public POC No
EPSS 0.1%
Patch available No
Active threat No
Deciding rule
HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9)
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
Scheduled
Exploitation
None
System Exposure· derived
Small
Automatable
No
Human Impact
High
Technical Impact
Total

Priority Score

37
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: 0
CVSS: +37
PoC: 0
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

Privilege escalation occurs when an attacker leverages flaws in access control mechanisms to gain permissions beyond what they were originally granted.

A buffer overflow occurs when a program writes more data to a memory buffer than it was allocated to hold, causing the excess data to spill into adjacent memory regions.

Race conditions occur when multiple concurrent requests exploit the brief time gap between checking a condition and acting upon it (TOCTOU - Time of Check, Time of Use).

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