This vulnerability (CVE-2026-6533) affects the Wireshark network protocol analyzer in versions 4.6.0 through 4.6.4 and 4.4.0 through 4.4.14. The flaw is due to improper control of sequential memory allocation within the LZ77 decompression engine used during packet dissection. When triggered, this causes a crash of the application, resulting in denial of service. The CVSS 3.1 base score is 5.5, reflecting a medium severity with local attack vector, low attack complexity, no privileges required, user interaction needed, and impact limited to availability. No official remediation or patch has been documented in the vendor advisory or other sources at this time.

Successful exploitation causes a denial of service by crashing the Wireshark application during packet dissection. There is no impact on confidentiality or integrity. The attack requires local access and user interaction, limiting the scope of exploitation. No known exploits are currently reported in the wild.

Patch status is not yet confirmed — check the vendor advisory for current remediation guidance. Until an official fix is released, users should avoid opening untrusted capture files or consider running Wireshark in a restricted environment to limit potential impact. Monitor vendor communications for updates on patches or mitigations.