CVE-2026-96419 in Wireshark
Summary
by MITRE • 09/29/2026
Profile import crash in 4.6.0 to 4.6.8 and 4.4.0 to 4.4.18 allows denial of service and possible code execution
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/29/2026
The vulnerability described involves a critical flaw within the profile import functionality of specific software versions, namely those ranging from 4.4.0 through 4.4.18 and 4.6.0 through 4.6.8. This defect manifests when an attacker provides malformed or specifically crafted input during the process of importing user profiles into the application. The immediate consequence of this flawed processing is a crash in the affected software, which constitutes a denial of service condition that disrupts availability for legitimate users and administrators relying on the system. However, beyond the simple disruption of service, the nature of the memory corruption or logic error underlying this crash suggests a significantly more severe risk vector: potential remote code execution. This dual impact transforms what might initially appear as a simple stability issue into a high-severity security vulnerability capable of compromising the integrity and confidentiality of the entire system.
From a technical perspective, such crashes during import operations are frequently indicative of memory safety violations or improper handling of untrusted data structures. In many enterprise applications, profile imports involve parsing complex data formats that may include nested objects, arrays, or binary blobs. If the application fails to adequately validate input lengths, types, or boundaries before processing them into internal buffers, it can lead to buffer overflows, use-after-free conditions, or integer overflow errors. These memory corruption issues allow an attacker who controls the import payload to overwrite adjacent memory regions with malicious shellcode or control flow hijacking data. When the application subsequently attempts to execute code in these corrupted areas, such as during profile rendering or validation routines, it may inadvertently execute arbitrary commands under the context of the running process. This aligns closely with CWE-120 Buffer Copy without Checking Size of Input and CWE-787 Out-of-bounds Write, which are common root causes for exploitation leading to code execution in C/C++ based applications.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe due to its potential scope. If the profile import feature is accessible over a network interface or can be triggered by any authenticated user with permission to manage profiles, an attacker could exploit it remotely without prior interaction beyond authentication. The denial of service aspect ensures that even if exploitation for code execution fails, the attacker retains the ability to degrade system performance or render services unavailable, causing business disruption and potential SLA violations. More critically, successful exploitation would grant the attacker a foothold within the application server's environment. Depending on the privileges assigned to the process running the software, this could lead to full system compromise, allowing lateral movement across the network, exfiltration of sensitive data stored in profiles or databases, and persistence mechanisms that evade standard detection tools. This scenario is consistent with ATT&CK technique T1059 Command and Scripting Interpreter if shellcode spawns a command prompt, or T1203 Exploitation for Client Execution if the payload targets client-side components involved in profile display.
Mitigation strategies must address both immediate remediation and long-term architectural improvements. The primary defense is to apply vendor-provided patches that update the software to versions beyond 4.6.8 and 4.4.18, where these specific input validation checks have been corrected. Until patching can be performed, organizations should implement network-level controls such as web application firewalls or intrusion prevention systems configured to detect anomalous patterns in profile import payloads, particularly those containing unusually large data blocks or encoded strings that might indicate buffer overflow attempts. Additionally, restricting access to the profile import functionality to only essential administrators reduces the attack surface. From a development lifecycle perspective, this vulnerability highlights the necessity of integrating static application security testing and dynamic analysis tools into CI/CD pipelines to catch memory safety issues early. Input validation must be rigorous, employing allow-listing for expected data formats and strict length checks before any processing occurs. Furthermore, enabling runtime protection mechanisms such as Address Space Layout Randomization, Data Execution Prevention, and stack canaries can significantly raise the bar for successful exploitation by making it harder for attackers to predict memory layouts or execute injected code even if a vulnerability is present.