CVE-2026-70459
Description
A flaw was found in rsync. A remote attacker could send a specially crafted file list to the rsync daemon. This could lead to a null pointer dereference, causing the daemon to crash and resulting in a Denial of Service (DoS).
Statement
This Moderate impact vulnerability in rsync allows a remote, unauthenticated attacker to trigger a null pointer dereference in the rsync daemon by sending a specially crafted file list. This can lead to a denial of service, as the daemon will crash and terminate the client connection. The impact is limited to availability and requires the rsync daemon to be actively running and exposed to untrusted networks.
Mitigation
To mitigate this issue, restrict network access to the rsync daemon to trusted clients only. If the rsync daemon is not actively used, consider disabling the service.
To restrict access using firewall-cmd:
`firewall-cmd --permanent --add-rich-rule='rule family="ipv4" source address="<TRUSTED_IP_ADDRESS>" port port="873" protocol="tcp" accept'`
`firewall-cmd --reload`
To disable the rsync service:
`systemctl stop rsyncd.service`
`systemctl disable rsyncd.service`
If the rsync service is re-enabled or reloaded, the mitigation steps may need to be reapplied.
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 | 5.3 | N/A | 5.3 |
| Attack Vector | Network | N/A | Network |
| Attack Complexity | Low | N/A | Low |
| Privileges Required | None | N/A | None |
| User Interaction | None | N/A | None |
| Scope | Unchanged | N/A | Unchanged |
| Confidentiality | None | N/A | None |
| Integrity Impact | None | N/A | None |
| Availability Impact | Low | N/A | Low |
Vector
Red Hat: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L
cve.org: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L
Understanding the Weakness (CWE)
Availability
Technical Impact: DoS: Crash, Exit, or Restart
NULL pointer dereferences usually result in the failure of the process unless exception handling (on some platforms) is available and implemented. Even when exception handling is being used, it can still be very difficult to return the software to a safe state of operation.
Integrity,Confidentiality
Technical Impact: Execute Unauthorized Code or Commands; Read Memory; Modify Memory
In rare circumstances, when NULL is equivalent to the 0x0 memory address and privileged code can access it, then writing or reading memory is possible, which may lead to code execution.
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