CVE-2026-85509 in FreeIPMI
Summary
by MITRE • 09/04/2026
FreeIPMI before 1.6.19 has a stack-based buffer overflow in _read_fru_data in libfreeipmi/fru/ipmi-fru.c when a BMC returns more bytes than requested.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/04/2026
The vulnerability identified in FreeIPMI versions prior to 1.6.19 represents a critical memory safety failure located within the fru module, specifically inside the _read_fru_data function found in libfreeipmi/fru/ipmi-fru.c. This stack-based buffer overflow occurs when the Baseboard Management Controller (BMC) returns a quantity of bytes that exceeds the amount initially requested by the client application during an FRU (Field Replaceable Unit) data retrieval operation. The root cause lies in insufficient validation of input lengths received from external hardware interfaces, allowing malicious or malformed BMC responses to overwrite adjacent memory locations on the call stack. This flaw is directly associated with CWE-121, which classifies stack-based buffer overflows as a category of software errors where an application writes data past the end of a fixed-size stack buffer, potentially leading to arbitrary code execution if the overflow can be precisely controlled by an attacker.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability poses significant risks in environments relying on IPMI for hardware monitoring and management. Since FreeIPMI is widely used in enterprise server infrastructure, cloud computing platforms, and data centers, a successful exploitation could allow a compromised or malicious BMC to execute arbitrary code within the context of the process running FreeIPMI tools such as ipmi-sensor or ipmi-fru. This could lead to complete system compromise, including privilege escalation if the tool runs with elevated permissions, denial of service through application crashes, and potential lateral movement across the management network. The attack vector typically involves interacting directly with the BMC via IPMI commands, which may be accessible over local networks or, in poorly segmented environments, remotely. This aligns with MITRE ATT&CK techniques related to command and control execution and potentially initial access if exploited during routine maintenance operations that query hardware inventory data.
Mitigation strategies primarily involve upgrading FreeIPMI to version 1.6.19 or later, where the developers have implemented proper bounds checking for FRU data retrieval operations. Until an upgrade is feasible, administrators should restrict network access to IPMI interfaces using strict firewall rules and VLAN segmentation to prevent unauthorized BMC interactions. Additionally, running FreeIPMI tools with minimal required privileges can reduce the impact of a successful exploitation event. Security teams should also monitor for anomalous behavior in management networks and ensure that firmware on BMCs is up-to-date to minimize the risk of malformed responses being generated by compromised or buggy hardware controllers. Regular vulnerability scanning focused on IPMI services and continuous integration testing of FreeIPMI updates are recommended practices to maintain resilience against this class of memory corruption vulnerabilities.