CVE-2026-44631
Description
A flaw was found in Apache HTTP Server. This buffer underwrite vulnerability occurs when processing crafted regular expressions in the server's configuration. An attacker could potentially exploit this to cause a denial of service.
Statement
This Moderate impact buffer underwrite flaw in Apache HTTP Server can lead to a denial of service. The vulnerability occurs when processing specially crafted regular expressions within the server's configuration. Exploitation requires a high attack complexity, indicating that specific conditions or a complex attack vector are necessary, thereby limiting the practical risk in typical Red Hat deployments where configuration changes are tightly controlled.
Mitigation
Only loadtrustedApache configuration; the bug triggers oncrafted regexin config at start/reload (DirectoryMatch,Directory ~,ProxyMatch, etc.).
Keep AllowOverride None where possible so untrusted users cannot inject regex via .htaccess.
Restrict who can change httpdconfig and reload the service.
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 | 7.7 | N/A | 9.8 |
| Attack Vector | Network | N/A | Network |
| Attack Complexity | High | N/A | Low |
| Privileges Required | None | N/A | None |
| User Interaction | None | N/A | None |
| Scope | Unchanged | N/A | Unchanged |
| Confidentiality | Low | N/A | High |
| Integrity Impact | High | N/A | High |
| Availability Impact | High | N/A | High |
Vector
Red Hat: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:H/A:H
cve.org: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Understanding the Weakness (CWE)
Integrity,Availability
Technical Impact: Modify Memory; DoS: Crash, Exit, or Restart
Out of bounds memory access will very likely result in the corruption of relevant memory, and perhaps instructions, possibly leading to a crash.
Integrity,Confidentiality,Availability,Access Control,Other
Technical Impact: Execute Unauthorized Code or Commands; Modify Memory; Bypass Protection Mechanism; Other
If the corrupted memory can be effectively controlled, it may be possible to execute arbitrary code. If the corrupted memory is data rather than instructions, the system will continue to function with improper changes, possibly in violation of an implicit or explicit policy. The consequences would only be limited by how the affected data is used, such as an adjacent memory location that is used to specify whether the user has special privileges.
Access Control,Other
Technical Impact: Bypass Protection Mechanism; Other
When the consequence is arbitrary code execution, this can often be used to subvert any other security service.
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