CVE-2026-61801
Description
A flaw was found in the moby/sys/user package. The package does not properly limit memory allocation when parsing Unix-style user and group database files, such as /etc/passwd or /etc/group. An attacker who can supply a specially crafted file can cause excessive memory consumption, leading to a Denial of Service (DoS) condition by crashing the affected process.
Statement
This vulnerability is rated as Moderate impact because exploitation requires supplying a malicious user or group database file to an affected tool, and the resulting impact is limited to an out-of-memory denial of service without compromising confidentiality, integrity, or elevating privileges. Across Red Hat enterprise environments, container management utilities and orchestration platforms invoke these routines when inspecting filesystem layers or resolving identity information during container execution. While an attacker capable of providing a specially crafted database file could trigger resource exhaustion and terminate the consuming process, the flaw does not facilitate container escapes or host compromise.
Mitigation
Mitigation for this issue is either not available or the currently available options do not meet the Red Hat Product Security criteria comprising ease of use and deployment, applicability to widespread installation base, or stability.
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).
CVSS v3 Score Breakdown
| Red Hat | NVD | cve.org | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base Score | 5.5 | N/A | 5.5 |
| Attack Vector | Local | N/A | Local |
| Attack Complexity | Low | N/A | Low |
| Privileges Required | Low | N/A | Low |
| User Interaction | None | N/A | None |
| Scope | Unchanged | N/A | Unchanged |
| Confidentiality | None | N/A | None |
| Integrity Impact | None | N/A | None |
| Availability Impact | High | N/A | High |
Vector
Red Hat: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
cve.org: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
Understanding the Weakness (CWE)
Availability
Technical Impact: DoS: Resource Consumption (CPU); DoS: Resource Consumption (Memory); DoS: Resource Consumption (Other)
When allocating resources without limits, an attacker could prevent other systems, applications, or processes from accessing the same type of resource. It can be easy for an attacker to consume many resources by rapidly making many requests or causing larger resources to be used than is needed.
Frequently Asked Questions
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