CVE Intelligence
Low Logic error

CVE-2026-86141 — Unchecked Return Value in Xmlsoft Libxml2

xmlregexp in libxml2 before 2.15.4 has a NULL pointer dereference in xmlRegNewParserCtxt after a strdup failure, i.e., it does not calculate a string length after NULL checking.

Published Sep 5, 2026 · Updated Oct 15, 2026 · Sources: NIST National Vulnerability Database · CNA: cve@mitre.org

Who exploits it and how urgent it is

A 0–100 score combining confirmed exploitation, ransomware and APT use, public exploits, EPSS and severity.

No exploitation signal in the sources consulted so far.
How the score was calculated
  • No scoring signals.

The score orders the patch queue; it does not replace your asset context (internet exposure, criticality, compensating controls).

Triage

Is it exploited, how likely is exploitation, what does it touch, and how severe do the sources call it.

Exploitation
Not confirmed
Not in CISA KEV — an absence of record, not proof it is unexploited.
EPSS FIRST
—
No EPSS score.
Affects
Xmlsoft
Libxml2
CVSS base
3.3
Low · 2 source(s)

Remediation

Fixes and mitigations documented by the sources — linked to the original advisory.

  • Documented patch — github.com (NIST National Vulnerability Database)

First 24 hours

Ordered from the record’s own fields — exposure first, because you cannot patch what you have not found. A rule-generated starting point.

  1. Identify exposed assets running the affected vendor/product/version combinations (Xmlsoft Libxml2).
  2. Apply the fixed version or the patch documented under Remediation.
  3. Search available logs for exploit probes matching the vulnerability class (logic error), errors and authentication anomalies.

Affected scope

Vendor, product and versions as the sources word them.

VendorProductVersionsStatusSource
Xmlsoft Libxml2 < 2.15.4 Vulnerable NIST National Vulnerability Database

Attack characteristics

The CVSS vector, decoded. It describes the attack, not your exposure to it.

Attack vector
Local
Attack complexity
Low
Privileges required
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
None
Availability
Low

Every base score collected

Sources score independently and may disagree; each row says who scored it and under which version.

ScoreVersionSeverityExpl.ImpactScored by
3.3 CVSS 3.1 Low 1.8 1.4 nvd@nist.gov via NIST National Vulnerability Database
2.9 CVSS 3.1 Low 1.4 1.4 cve@mitre.org via NIST National Vulnerability Database
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L (score shown at the top: nvd@nist.gov)
Scoring entities (NIST, CNA, ADP) score independently; each score is shown with its origin. For prioritization we use 3.3 (NVD (NIST)) as a conservative provisional reference — not a definitive official score.

Weakness MITRE

Weakness class according to MITRE’s CWE catalog.

CWE-252 · Unchecked Return Value

Other CVEs with this weakness →

Detection

Read off the CVSS vector and the weakness class. Starting points, not tested rules.

  • Local/physical vector: focus on endpoint telemetry (EDR) from affected hosts.
endpoint telemetry (EDR)

Timeline

What happened to this CVE, newest first.

  • 2026
  • Record published
    Oct 15, 2026
  • Fix documented
    Oct 15, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • CVSS changed · 3.3
    Oct 15, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • Source status changed · → Analyzed
    Oct 15, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • Record created in this database
    Oct 15, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • CVE published
    Sep 5, 2026 · cve@mitre.org

Source activity

Repeated readings are counted rather than listed.

  • 1× Official description updated · Oct 15, 2026 – Oct 15, 2026

References

3 on the record

Elsewhere on this site

Xmlsoft
every CVE for this vendor
Logic error
same class
CWE-252
other pages naming this weakness

Related CVEs (same products)

  • CVE-2026-86144 Incorrect Resource Transfer Between Spheres in Xmlsoft Libxml2 Sep 5, 2026
  • CVE-2026-86143 In xmlIO in libxml2 before 2.15.4, an inconsistency in xmlOutputWriteCallback and… Sep 5, 2026
  • CVE-2026-86142 Heap-based Buffer Overflow in Xmlsoft Libxml2 Sep 5, 2026
  • CVE-2026-86140 Stack-based Buffer Overflow in Xmlsoft Libxml2 Sep 5, 2026
  • CVE-2026-86138 Integer Overflow or Wraparound in Xmlsoft Libxml2 Sep 5, 2026
  • CVE-2026-86139 Integer Overflow or Wraparound in Xmlsoft Libxml2 Sep 5, 2026

Not in any source we poll

Listed rather than left blank: an empty field and an unmeasured one look identical on screen, and only one is a reason to look elsewhere.

  • No FIRST EPSS score.
  • No CISA SSVC assessment.
  • No confirmed IOCs, IP addresses, domains, file hashes, or malware artifacts supplied.
  • No organization-specific asset inventory, compensating-control status, or patch deployment evidence supplied.
  • No exploit packet captures, log samples, or incident case IDs supplied.

Answered from this record

Text assembled only from the fields above — no additional claims.

What should defenders know first?

CVE-2026-86141 is "Unchecked Return Value in Xmlsoft Libxml2", rated Low. It affects Libxml2 (Xmlsoft); versions are in the scope table. It is not in CISA KEV, which does not rule out exploitation. CVSS 3.3 describes technical severity. First verify whether exposed or business-critical assets run the affected versions, apply vendor fixes or mitigations, and preserve logs for review.

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