CVE-2026-56288: GNU patch is vulnerable to a NULL pointer dereference when processing a specially crafted
Affects patchSource GCVE Database
Mentioned vulnerabilities
Not known to be exploited · CVSS 4.6 Medium.
Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 09:16 UTC
- EPSS
- 0.1% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 1% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:A/VC:N/VI:N/VA:L/SC:N/SI:N/SA:NExploitation evidence
Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 9 Jul 2026
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponised: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors
A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 26 Oct 2026.
What to do
Affected software
| Product | Affected | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
Ubuntu:Pro:14.04:LTSpatchpkg:deb/ubuntu/patch?arch=source&distro=esm-infra-legacy/trustyOther threats | Affected
| Fixed in– |
Ubuntu:16.04:LTSpatchpkg:deb/ubuntu/patch?arch=source&distro=xenialOther threats | Affected
| Fixed in– |
Ubuntu:18.04:LTSpatchpkg:deb/ubuntu/patch?arch=source&distro=bionicOther threats | Affected
| Fixed in– |
Ubuntu:20.04:LTSpatchpkg:deb/ubuntu/patch?arch=source&distro=focalOther threats | Affected
| Fixed in– |
Ubuntu:22.04:LTSpatchpkg:deb/ubuntu/patch?arch=source&distro=jammyOther threats | Affected
| Fixed in– |
Ubuntu:24.04:LTSpatchpkg:deb/ubuntu/patch?arch=source&distro=nobleOther threats | Affected
| Fixed in– |
Ubuntu:25.10patchpkg:deb/ubuntu/patch?arch=source&distro=questingOther threats | Affected
| Fixed in– |
Ubuntu:26.04:LTSpatchpkg:deb/ubuntu/patch?arch=source&distro=resoluteOther threats | Affected
| Fixed in– |
Ubuntu:26.10patchpkg:deb/ubuntu/patch?arch=source&distro=stonkingOther threats | Affected
| Fixed in– |
Check your own hosts for these packages with threat-finder (opens in a new tab), our free open-source scanner.
AI-suggested
A security update addressing these vulnerabilities has been released. Users should apply the available patches from their SUSE or Ubuntu distribution to remediate these issues.
Description
Two vulnerabilities were identified in the patch utility affecting multiple specific versions distributed by SUSE and Ubuntu. CVE-2026-56288 involves a crafted unified-diff patch file that can cause a null pointer dereference. CVE-2026-56289 involves improper validation of hunk line offsets that can lead to denial of service. The severity of these vulnerabilities is assessed as low.
References
- ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2026-56288 (opens in a new tab)
- cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-56288 (opens in a new tab)
- cert.pl/en/posts/2026/07/CVE-2026-56288 (opens in a new tab)
- suse.com/support/security/rating/ (opens in a new tab)
- ftp.suse.com/pub/projects/security/csaf/opensuse-su-2026_21332-1.json (opens in a new tab)
- bugzilla.suse.com/1271166 (opens in a new tab)
- bugzilla.suse.com/1271167 (opens in a new tab)
- suse.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-56288/ (opens in a new tab)
- suse.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-56289/ (opens in a new tab)
- ftp.suse.com/pub/projects/security/csaf/suse-su-2026_22604-1.json (opens in a new tab)
- suse.com/support/update/announcement/2026/suse-su-202622604-1/ (opens in a new tab)
- lists.suse.com/pipermail/sle-updates/2026-July/048269.html (opens in a new tab)
- cgit.git.savannah.gnu.org/cgit/patch.git/ (opens in a new tab)
- cgit.git.savannah.gnu.org/cgit/patch.git/commit/?id=e6d6a4e021660679d7fc9150f981d4920f722313 (opens in a new tab)