CVE-2026-22185
📋 TL;DR
This vulnerability is a heap buffer underflow in OpenLDAP LMDB's mdb_load utility that allows an attacker to cause a denial-of-service by crashing the process. It affects systems using LMDB versions up to 0.9.14 when processing malformed input files. The impact is limited to DoS rather than remote code execution.
💻 Affected Systems
- OpenLDAP Lightning Memory-Mapped Database (LMDB)
⚠️ Manual Verification Required
This CVE does not have specific version information in our database, so automatic vulnerability detection cannot determine if your system is affected.
Why? The CVE database entry doesn't specify which versions are vulnerable (no version ranges provided by the vendor/NVD).
🔒 Custom verification scripts are available for registered users. Sign up free to download automated test scripts.
- Review the CVE details at NVD
- Check vendor security advisories for your specific version
- Test if the vulnerability is exploitable in your environment
- Consider updating to the latest version as a precaution
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete denial-of-service for mdb_load operations, potentially disrupting database loading processes and dependent services.
Likely Case
mdb_load crashes when processing malicious input files, causing temporary service disruption until the process is restarted.
If Mitigated
Minimal impact with proper input validation and monitoring; crashes are logged and processes can be automatically restarted.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires ability to provide input files to mdb_load; proof-of-concept details are publicly available in disclosure reports.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Fixed in commit 8e1fda8 and later versions
Vendor Advisory: https://bugs.openldap.org/show_bug.cgi?id=10421
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
1. Update LMDB to version after commit 8e1fda8
2. Recompile any applications using LMDB with the updated library
3. Replace existing mdb_load binary with patched version
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Input validation wrapper
linuxCreate a wrapper script that validates input files before passing to mdb_load
#!/bin/bash
# Validate input file doesn't contain NUL bytes
if grep -q $'\x00' "$1"; then
echo "Invalid input file"
exit 1
fi
mdb_load "$1"
Restrict mdb_load access
linuxLimit which users can execute mdb_load and control input file sources
chmod 750 /usr/bin/mdb_load
setfacl -m u:trusteduser:rx /usr/bin/mdb_load
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Restrict mdb_load execution to trusted users only
- Implement strict input validation for all files processed by mdb_load
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check LMDB version: mdb_load -V or check library versionCheck Version:
mdb_load -V 2>&1 | grep version || strings /usr/bin/mdb_load | grep LMDBVerify Fix Applied:
Verify commit hash includes 8e1fda8 or test with known malicious input file📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Segmentation fault or crash logs from mdb_load
- Unexpected termination of mdb_load processes
Network Indicators:
- N/A - local utility not network exposed
SIEM Query:
process_name="mdb_load" AND (exit_code=139 OR signal="SIGSEGV")