CVE-2026-16846: CWE-476 NULL Pointer Dereference in IBM AIX
CVE-2026-16846 is a medium severity vulnerability in IBM AIX versions 7.2 and 7.3, as well as IBM PowerVM VIOS 4.1. It involves a null pointer dereference (CWE-476) that could be triggered remotely, causing a denial of service condition. There is no indication of confidentiality or integrity impact. No official patch or remediation guidance is currently provided by IBM.
AI Analysis
Technical Summary
This vulnerability in IBM AIX 7.2 and 7.3, and IBM PowerVM VIOS 4.1, allows a remote attacker to cause a denial of service via a null pointer dereference. The CVSS 3.1 base score is 6.5 with vector AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H, indicating the attack requires adjacent network access, low complexity, no privileges, no user interaction, and impacts availability only. No vendor advisory or patch information is available at this time.
Potential Impact
The vulnerability can cause a denial of service by crashing or destabilizing the affected system due to null pointer dereference. There is no impact on confidentiality or integrity. The attack vector is adjacent network, meaning the attacker must have access to the local network segment.
Mitigation Recommendations
Patch status is not yet confirmed — check the vendor advisory for current remediation guidance. Until a fix is available, limit access to trusted network segments and monitor for unusual system crashes or instability related to IBM AIX 7.2 and 7.3 or PowerVM VIOS 4.1.
CVE-2026-16846: CWE-476 NULL Pointer Dereference in IBM AIX
Description
CVE-2026-16846 is a medium severity vulnerability in IBM AIX versions 7.2 and 7.3, as well as IBM PowerVM VIOS 4.1. It involves a null pointer dereference (CWE-476) that could be triggered remotely, causing a denial of service condition. There is no indication of confidentiality or integrity impact. No official patch or remediation guidance is currently provided by IBM.
CVSS v3.1
Score 6.5medium
Affected software
cpe:2.3:a:ibm:aix:7.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*cpe:2.3:a:ibm:aix:7.2.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*cpe:2.3:a:ibm:aix:7.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:*cpe:2.3:a:ibm:aix:7.3.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*cpe:2.3:a:ibm:powervm_vios:4.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:*cpe:2.3:a:ibm:powervm_vios:4.1.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*Run on your own infrastructure? Check whether these packages are installed with threat-finder — our free open-source scanner.
Weaknesses
AI-Powered Analysis
Machine-generated threat intelligence
Technical Analysis
This vulnerability in IBM AIX 7.2 and 7.3, and IBM PowerVM VIOS 4.1, allows a remote attacker to cause a denial of service via a null pointer dereference. The CVSS 3.1 base score is 6.5 with vector AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H, indicating the attack requires adjacent network access, low complexity, no privileges, no user interaction, and impacts availability only. No vendor advisory or patch information is available at this time.
Potential Impact
The vulnerability can cause a denial of service by crashing or destabilizing the affected system due to null pointer dereference. There is no impact on confidentiality or integrity. The attack vector is adjacent network, meaning the attacker must have access to the local network segment.
Mitigation Recommendations
Patch status is not yet confirmed — check the vendor advisory for current remediation guidance. Until a fix is available, limit access to trusted network segments and monitor for unusual system crashes or instability related to IBM AIX 7.2 and 7.3 or PowerVM VIOS 4.1.
Technical Details
- Data Version
- 5.2
- Assigner Short Name
- ibm
- Date Reserved
- 2026-07-24T03:11:02.010Z
- Cvss Version
- 3.1
- State
- PUBLISHED
- Remediation Level
- null
Threat ID: 6a860991acd9273b498b4c21
Added to database: 08/19/2026, 19:52:49 UTC
Last enriched: 08/19/2026, 20:09:21 UTC
Last updated: 08/19/2026, 21:12:19 UTC
Views: 2
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