CVE-2026-52131
Description
A flaw was found in llama.cpp. This vulnerability, triggered by a reachable assertion, could allow an attacker to cause a denial of service (DoS). A successful exploit would make the affected system or application unavailable to legitimate users.
Statement
A flaw was found in llama.cpp within the GGUF model reader component (gguf_reader::read). Processing a malformed or specially crafted GGUF model file can trigger a reachable assertion failure during metadata or tensor header parsing. An attacker capable of tricking a user or application into loading a malicious GGUF file can cause the application to terminate unexpectedly, resulting in a denial of service.
Mitigation
Restrict model loading permissions to prevent unprivileged users from providing custom or untrusted GGUF model files to llama.cpp processes. Validate and ingest GGUF model files only from trusted, authenticated registry or storage sources.
Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) Score Details
Info alert:Important note
CVSS scores for open source components depend on vendor-specific factors (e.g. version or build chain). Therefore, Red Hat's score and impact rating can be different from NVD and other vendors. Red Hat remains the authoritative CVE Naming Authority (CNA) source for its products and services (see Red Hat classifications).
The following CVSS metrics and score provided are preliminary and subject to review.
CVSS v3 Score Breakdown
| Red Hat | NVD | cve.org | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base Score | 5 | N/A | 7.5 |
| Attack Vector | Local | N/A | Network |
| Attack Complexity | Low | N/A | Low |
| Privileges Required | Low | N/A | None |
| User Interaction | Required | N/A | None |
| Scope | Unchanged | N/A | Unchanged |
| Confidentiality | None | N/A | High |
| Integrity Impact | None | N/A | None |
| Availability Impact | High | N/A | None |
Vector
Red Hat: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
cve.org: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
Understanding the Weakness (CWE)
Availability
Technical Impact: DoS: Crash, Exit, or Restart
An attacker that can trigger an assert statement can still lead to a denial of service if the relevant code can be triggered by an attacker, and if the scope of the assert() extends beyond the attacker's own session.
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