8.4
HIGH CVSS 3.1
CVE-2026-5398
Kernel use-after-free bug in the TIOCNOTTY handler
Description

The implementation of TIOCNOTTY failed to clear a back-pointer from the structure representing the controlling terminal to the calling process' session. If the invoking process then exits, the terminal structure may end up containing a pointer to freed memory. A malicious process can abuse the dangling pointer to grant itself root privileges.

INFO

Published Date :

April 22, 2026, 3:16 a.m.

Last Modified :

May 1, 2026, 12:49 p.m.

Remotely Exploit :

No
Affected Products

The following products are affected by CVE-2026-5398 vulnerability. Even if cvefeed.io is aware of the exact versions of the products that are affected, the information is not represented in the table below.

ID Vendor Product Action
1 Freebsd freebsd
CVSS Scores
The Common Vulnerability Scoring System is a standardized framework for assessing the severity of vulnerabilities in software and systems. We collect and displays CVSS scores from various sources for each CVE.
Score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Score Impact Score Source
CVSS 3.1 HIGH 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0
Solution
Fix dangling pointer in TIOCNOTTY implementation to prevent privilege escalation.
  • Correct the TIOCNOTTY implementation to clear back-pointers.
  • Ensure terminal structures do not point to freed memory.
  • Remove dangling pointers from terminal structures.
  • Validate session management after process exit.
Public PoC/Exploit Available at Github

CVE-2026-5398 has a 1 public PoC/Exploit available at Github. Go to the Public Exploits tab to see the list.

References to Advisories, Solutions, and Tools

Here, you will find a curated list of external links that provide in-depth information, practical solutions, and valuable tools related to CVE-2026-5398.

URL Resource
https://security.freebsd.org/advisories/FreeBSD-SA-26:10.tty.asc Vendor Advisory
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration

While CVE identifies specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2026-5398 is associated with the following CWEs:

Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC)

Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC) stores attack patterns, which are descriptions of the common attributes and approaches employed by adversaries to exploit the CVE-2026-5398 weaknesses.

We scan GitHub repositories to detect new proof-of-concept exploits. Following list is a collection of public exploits and proof-of-concepts, which have been published on GitHub (sorted by the most recently updated).

Tracking Vulnerabilities That Appear to be Credited to the Anthropic Research Team

Updated: 6 days, 19 hours ago
18 stars 3 fork 3 watcher
Born at : April 17, 2026, 4:15 p.m. This repo has been linked 54 different CVEs too.

Results are limited to the first 15 repositories due to potential performance issues.

The following list is the news that have been mention CVE-2026-5398 vulnerability anywhere in the article.

The following table lists the changes that have been made to the CVE-2026-5398 vulnerability over time.

Vulnerability history details can be useful for understanding the evolution of a vulnerability, and for identifying the most recent changes that may impact the vulnerability's severity, exploitability, or other characteristics.

  • Initial Analysis by [email protected]

    May. 01, 2026

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added CPE Configuration OR *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:15.0:p1:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:15.0:p2:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:13.5:p1:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:13.5:p2:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:13.5:p3:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:13.5:p4:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:13.5:p5:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:13.5:p6:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:13.5:p7:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:13.5:p8:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:13.5:-:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:13.5:p9:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:14.3:-:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:14.3:p1:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:14.3:p2:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:14.3:p3:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:14.3:p4:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:14.3:p5:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:14.3:p6:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:14.3:p7:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:14.3:p8:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:15.0:-:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:14.4:rc1:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:15.0:p3:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:14.3:p9:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:14.4:-:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:15.0:p4:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:13.5:beta3:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:13.5:p10:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:13.5:p11:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:14.3:p10:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:14.4:p1:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:freebsd:freebsd:15.0:p5:*:*:*:*:*:*
    Added Reference Type FreeBSD: https://security.freebsd.org/advisories/FreeBSD-SA-26:10.tty.asc Types: Vendor Advisory
  • CVE Modified by 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0

    Apr. 22, 2026

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added CVSS V3.1 AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
  • New CVE Received by [email protected]

    Apr. 22, 2026

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added Description The implementation of TIOCNOTTY failed to clear a back-pointer from the structure representing the controlling terminal to the calling process' session. If the invoking process then exits, the terminal structure may end up containing a pointer to freed memory. A malicious process can abuse the dangling pointer to grant itself root privileges.
    Added CWE CWE-416
    Added Reference https://security.freebsd.org/advisories/FreeBSD-SA-26:10.tty.asc
EPSS is a daily estimate of the probability of exploitation activity being observed over the next 30 days. Following chart shows the EPSS score history of the vulnerability.