CVE-2026-71136 in VM VirtualBox
Summary
by MITRE • 08/19/2026
Vulnerability in the Oracle VM VirtualBox product of Oracle Virtualization (component: Core). The supported version that is affected is 7.2.14. Easily exploitable vulnerability allows high privileged attacker with logon to the infrastructure where Oracle VM VirtualBox executes to compromise Oracle VM VirtualBox. While the vulnerability is in Oracle VM VirtualBox, attacks may significantly impact additional products (scope change). Successful attacks of this vulnerability can result in unauthorized ability to cause a hang or frequently repeatable crash (complete DOS) of Oracle VM VirtualBox as well as unauthorized update, insert or delete access to some of Oracle VM VirtualBox accessible data and unauthorized read access to a subset of Oracle VM VirtualBox accessible data. CVSS 3.1 Base Score 7.3 (Confidentiality, Integrity and Availability impacts). CVSS Vector: (CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:H).
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/19/2026
The identified vulnerability resides within the core component of Oracle VM VirtualBox version 7.2.14, representing a significant security flaw in one of the most widely deployed virtualization platforms globally. This issue is classified as an easily exploitable vulnerability that requires high privileged access to the host infrastructure where the hypervisor executes. The attacker must possess valid logon credentials and sufficient privileges on the underlying operating system to initiate the attack vector. Despite requiring local authentication, the severity of the flaw is amplified by its potential for scope change, meaning that a successful exploitation does not merely affect the VirtualBox application itself but can lead to compromise of additional products or services running within the virtualized environment or even affecting the host system depending on configuration and isolation settings. This characteristic underscores the critical nature of hypervisor security, as breaches in this layer often bypass traditional perimeter defenses designed for guest operating systems.
From a technical perspective, the vulnerability manifests through three distinct impact vectors: denial of service, integrity violation, and confidentiality breach. The most immediate operational consequence is the ability to cause a hang or frequently repeatable crash of the Oracle VM VirtualBox application, resulting in complete denial of service for any virtual machines hosted by that instance. This availability impact is rated as high in the CVSS scoring model because it disrupts business continuity and requires manual intervention to restore services. Beyond disruption, the flaw allows unauthorized modification of data accessible to VirtualBox, including updates, inserts, or deletions. This integrity compromise means an attacker could alter configuration files, corrupt virtual disk images, or manipulate state information critical for VM operation. Furthermore, the vulnerability permits unauthorized read access to a subset of data within the application's scope, potentially exposing sensitive guest operating system memory contents, network configurations, or stored credentials if such data is accessible through the compromised interface.
The CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.3 reflects these combined impacts on confidentiality, integrity, and availability. The vector string AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:H indicates that while the attack requires local access and high privileges, it does not require user interaction and has a significant impact on system scope due to the virtualization context. In terms of industry standards, this vulnerability aligns with CWE-400 Uncontrolled Resource Consumption regarding the denial-of-service aspect, where excessive resource usage leads to application failure. The integrity violations correspond to CWE-369 Enablement of Denial of Service via Diversion of Execution or similar categories involving unauthorized data modification, while the read access issues relate to CWE-200 Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor. From a tactical standpoint within the MITRE ATT&CK framework, this vulnerability facilitates lateral movement and privilege escalation scenarios where an attacker with host-level access can destabilize security tools running in VMs or extract sensitive data from isolated environments that were presumed secure by their virtualization boundaries.
Mitigation strategies must focus on both immediate remediation and long-term architectural hardening. The primary defense is the prompt application of vendor-supplied patches to update Oracle VM VirtualBox to a version where this core flaw has been resolved. Organizations should verify patch compliance across all hosts running vulnerable versions, particularly those hosting critical workloads or sensitive data. In addition to patching, administrators should enforce strict least-privilege principles for accounts that have access to the host infrastructure running VirtualBox. Reducing the number of users with high-level privileges on hypervisor hosts significantly lowers the attack surface available to exploit this vulnerability. Furthermore, implementing robust monitoring and logging solutions can help detect anomalous behavior indicative of exploitation attempts, such as repeated crashes or unexpected data modifications within virtual machine environments. Regular security assessments and penetration testing focused on virtualization layers are also recommended to identify similar weaknesses before they can be leveraged by malicious actors.