sysstat Incorrect Buffer Size calculation on 32-bit systems results in RCE via buffer overflow
sysstat is a set of system performance tools for the Linux operating system. On 32 bit systems, in versions 9.1.16 and newer but prior to 12.7.1, allocate_structures contains a size_t overflow in sa_common.c. The allocate_structures function insufficiently checks bounds before arithmetic multiplication, allowing for an overflow in the size allocated for the buffer representing system activities. This issue may lead to Remote Code Execution (RCE). This issue has been patched in version 12.7.1.
- Published
- Nov 8, 2022
- Updated
- Jun 17, 2026
- EPSS
- 1.2% · 68th percentile
- CWE
- CWE-120
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Report tools
Action score
31
Monitor
Low priority for now.
- CVSS
- 31 / 40 · 7.8 / 10
- CISA KEV
- 0 / 30 · Not listed
- EPSS
- 0 / 30 · 1.2%
CISA SSVC decision
- Exploitation
- proof of concept
- Automatable
- no
- Technical impact
- total
Vulnrichment: CISA's decision-tree inputs.
CNA vs NVD score
- NVD
- 7.8
- CNA · GitHub_M
- 7.0
- 0.8 point gap
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
The score given by the assigning authority versus NVD’s independent score. A gap means the severity is contested.
Affected systems
| Vendor | Product | CPE |
|---|---|---|
| sysstat project | sysstat | cpe:2.3:a:sysstat_project:sysstat |
| debian | debian linux | cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux |
| fedoraproject | fedora | cpe:2.3:o:fedoraproject:fedora |
Affected versions
NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.
- debian debian linux10.0
- fedoraproject fedora35
- fedoraproject fedora36
- fedoraproject fedora37
- sysstat project sysstat9.1.6 and later · before 12.6.1
Versions reported by the vendor
Affected version ranges reported by the assigning authority (GitHub_M). Independent of NVD's CPE analysis and usually ahead of it.
sysstat sysstat
- >= 9.1.16, < 12.7.1affected
Package-level exposure
OSV and GitHub Advisory data: ecosystem, package and range. SBOM matching uses this table.
| Ecosystem | Package | Affected range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| AlmaLinux:8 | sysstat | before 11.7.3-9.el8 | 11.7.3-9.el8 |
| AlmaLinux:9 | sysstat | before 12.5.4-5.el9 | 12.5.4-5.el9 |
| Debian:10 | sysstat | before 12.0.3-2+deb10u1 | 12.0.3-2+deb10u1 |
| Debian:11 | sysstat | before 12.5.2-2+deb11u1 | 12.5.2-2+deb11u1 |
| Debian:12 | sysstat | before 12.6.1-1 | 12.6.1-1 |
| openSUSE:Tumbleweed | sysstat | before 12.6.1-2.1 | 12.6.1-2.1 |
| Red Hat:enterprise_linux:8::appstream | sysstat | before 0:11.7.3-9.el8 | 0:11.7.3-9.el8 |
| Red Hat:enterprise_linux:8::appstream | sysstat-debuginfo | before 0:11.7.3-9.el8 | 0:11.7.3-9.el8 |
| Red Hat:enterprise_linux:8::appstream | sysstat-debugsource | before 0:11.7.3-9.el8 | 0:11.7.3-9.el8 |
| Red Hat:enterprise_linux:9::appstream | sysstat | before 0:12.5.4-5.el9 | 0:12.5.4-5.el9 |
| Red Hat:enterprise_linux:9::appstream | sysstat-debuginfo | before 0:12.5.4-5.el9 | 0:12.5.4-5.el9 |
| Red Hat:enterprise_linux:9::appstream | sysstat-debugsource | before 0:12.5.4-5.el9 | 0:12.5.4-5.el9 |
| SUSE:Linux Enterprise Micro 5.3 | sysstat | before 12.0.2-150000.3.37.1 | 12.0.2-150000.3.37.1 |
| SUSE:Linux Enterprise Micro 5.3 | sysstat | before 12.0.2-150000.3.37.1 | 12.0.2-150000.3.37.1 |
| SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server LTSS Extended Security 12 SP5 | sysstat | before 12.0.2-20.23.1 | 12.0.2-20.23.1 |
Same product
sysstat project: all recordsOther highest-scoring records for the same primary product.
- CVE-2019-19725sysstat through 12.2.0 has a double free in check_file_actlst in sa_common.c.40Plan
- CVE-2018-19416An issue was discovered in sysstat 12.1.1.32Monitor
- CVE-2023-33204sysstat through 12.7.2 allows a multiplication integer overflow in check_overflow in common.c.31Monitor
- CVE-2019-16167sysstat before 12.1.6 has memory corruption due to an Integer Overflow in remap_struct() in sa_common.c.22Monitor
- CVE-2018-19517An issue was discovered in sysstat 12.1.1.22Monitor
Remediation
Which version to upgrade to
Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.
| Product / package | Fixed version | Source |
|---|---|---|
| sysstat sysstat | 12.7.1 · description | Vendor (CNA) |
| almalinux:sysstat | 12.5.4-5.el9 · AlmaLinux:9 | Package registry (OSV) |
| debian:sysstat | 12.6.1-1 · Debian:12 | Package registry (OSV) |
| opensuse:sysstat | 12.0.2-150000.3.37.1 · openSUSE:Leap Micro 5.5 | Package registry (OSV) |
| red hat:sysstat | 0:12.5.4-5.el9 · Red Hat:enterprise_linux:9::appstream | Package registry (OSV) |
| red hat:sysstat-debuginfo | 0:12.5.4-5.el9 · Red Hat:enterprise_linux:9::appstream | Package registry (OSV) |
| red hat:sysstat-debugsource | 0:12.5.4-5.el9 · Red Hat:enterprise_linux:9::appstream | Package registry (OSV) |
| suse:sysstat | 12.0.2-150000.3.37.1 · SUSE:Linux Enterprise Micro 5.3 | Package registry (OSV) |
| suse:sysstat | 12.0.2-20.23.1 · SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server LTSS Extended Security 12 SP5 | Package registry (OSV) |
Exploit status
No known public exploit
No public exploit has been observed yet. That doesn't mean you're safe, only that the bar is a little higher.
Research context
For pentesters and researchers: attack profile, score disagreement, timeline, patch commits, credits, variant and chain candidates, bug bounty scope. All derived from existing data; no exploit code.
Timeline
From publication to today: proof of concept, Metasploit module, CISA KEV and fix record. Dates are as reported by the sources.
No dated events beyond publication.
FIRST EPSS daily score; only changes of 0.01 or more are recorded (step chart).
Patch and commit links
Commit, PR and diff links among the references. A starting point for patch-diffing and variant hunting; fixes, not exploits.
No commit or PR link among the references.
Credits
All researchersFinders, reporters and analysts named in the CNA record. Click a name for that researcher’s other records.
No credits in the CNA record.
Variant candidates
Same product, same weakness class, within 18 months. If the patch missed the root cause, the sibling bug is here.
No nightly-computed relations.
Chain candidates
An authentication bypass and a privilege-requiring bug in the same product, published close together: combined they may become an unauthenticated path.
—
Bug bounty scope
No known public program.
Source: bounty-targets-data (public HackerOne, Bugcrowd, Intigriti, YesWeHack listings).
Technical details
Attack conditions
- Someone with local access to the system can trigger it.
- No account or password is required.
- A user must open a link or visit a page.
- No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.
If successful
- Confidentiality
- high · data can be read
- Integrity
- high · data or configuration can be modified
- Availability
- high · the service can be disrupted
- Attack vector
- Local
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality impact
- High
- Integrity impact
- High
- Availability impact
- High
Weakness class (CWE)
CWE-120 · Buffer Copy without Checking Size of Input ('Classic Buffer Overflow')CVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
nvd-primary
Root cause
When data is copied, the source length is not compared with the size of the destination buffer. Excess data overwrites adjacent memory.
The bug in code
The whole CWE-120 classA representative example of this vulnerability class. Not the vendor's source code; it shows the faulty pattern and its fix.
Vulnerable
char buf[256];memcpy(buf, pkt->data, pkt->len);Fixed
char buf[256];if (pkt->len > sizeof(buf)) { return -EINVAL;}memcpy(buf, pkt->data, pkt->len);Attack context
MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.
Attack patterns (CAPEC)
- Buffer Overflow via Environment VariablesCAPEC-10likelihood: High · High
- Overflow BuffersCAPEC-100likelihood: High · Very High
- Client-side Injection-induced Buffer OverflowCAPEC-14likelihood: Medium · High
- Filter Failure through Buffer OverflowCAPEC-24likelihood: High · High
- MIME ConversionCAPEC-42likelihood: High · High
- Overflow Binary Resource FileCAPEC-44likelihood: High · Very High
- Buffer Overflow via Symbolic LinksCAPEC-45likelihood: High · High
- Overflow Variables and TagsCAPEC-46likelihood: High · High
ATT&CK techniques
—
Noroxi analysis
No Noroxi analysis for this record yet
We don't hand-write analysis for all 385,000+ vulnerabilities; that wouldn't be honest. For notable, high-impact vulnerabilities our team writes the mechanism, detection and remediation steps.
We use this product, ask for helpChange log
- Fix✗ → ✓
For records you follow, these changes also arrive as notifications. →
References
- lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2022/11/msg00014.html
- lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/6F26ALXWYHT4LN2AHPZM34OQEXTJE3JZ/
- lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/7X6WKTODOUDV6M3HZMASYNZP6EM4N7W4/
- lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/PHUVUDIVDJZ7AVXD3XX3NBXXXKPOKN3N/
- security.gentoo.org/glsa/202211-07
- lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2025/10/msg00017.html
Vendor advisories and official records. Exploit/PoC links are deliberately left out.