How severe is CVE-2017-7226?

CVE-2017-7226 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 9.1, rated critical severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity none, and availability high.

Is CVE-2017-7226 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 2% (82nd percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2017-7226?

CVE-2017-7226 affects Gnu Binutils. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.

How do I fix CVE-2017-7226?

Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its critical severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.

When was CVE-2017-7226 published?

CVE-2017-7226 was published on 2017-03-22 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2017-7226

CVE-2017-7226 is a critical-severity vulnerability in Gnu Binutils with a CVSS 3.x base score of 9.1. It is not currently listed as actively exploited by CISA, and its EPSS exploit-prediction score is low. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-125.

Key facts

Severity: Critical (CVSS 3.x base score 9.1)
CVSS v2: 6.4
EPSS exploit prediction: 2% (82nd percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-125
Affected product: Gnu Binutils
Published: 2017-03-22
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

The pe_ILF_object_p function in the Binary File Descriptor (BFD) library (aka libbfd), as distributed in GNU Binutils 2.28, is vulnerable to a heap-based buffer over-read of size 4049 because it uses the strlen function instead of strnlen, leading to program crashes in several utilities such as addr2line, size, and strings. It could lead to information disclosure as well.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2017-7226?: The pe_ILF_object_p function in the Binary File Descriptor (BFD) library (aka libbfd), as distributed in GNU Binutils 2.28, is vulnerable to a heap-based buffer over-read of size 4049 because it uses the strlen function instead of strnlen, leading to program crashes in several utilities such as addr2line, size, and strings. It could lead to information disclosure as well.
How severe is CVE-2017-7226?: CVE-2017-7226 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 9.1, rated critical severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity none, and availability high.
Is CVE-2017-7226 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 2% (82nd percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2017-7226?: CVE-2017-7226 affects Gnu Binutils. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.
How do I fix CVE-2017-7226?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its critical severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.
When was CVE-2017-7226 published?: CVE-2017-7226 was published on 2017-03-22 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

https://sourceware.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=20905

Affected products (1)

cpe:2.3:a:gnu:binutils:2.28:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

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