RIOT OS <= 2026.01-devel-317 Stack-Based Buffer Overflow in ethos Serial Frame Parser
Summary
| CVE | CVE-2026-22214 |
|---|---|
| State | PUBLISHED |
| Assigner | VulnCheck |
| Source Priority | CVE Program / NVD first with legacy fallback |
| Published | 2026-01-12 23:15:52 UTC |
| Updated | 2026-07-14 16:16:49 UTC |
| Description | RIOT OS versions up to and including 2026.01-devel-317 contain a stack-based buffer overflow vulnerability in the ethos utility due to missing bounds checking when processing incoming serial frame data. The vulnerability occurs in the _handle_char() function, where incoming frame bytes are appended to a fixed-size stack buffer without verifying that the current write index remains within bounds. An attacker capable of sending crafted serial or TCP-framed input can cause the current write index to exceed the buffer size, resulting in a write past the end of the stack buffer. This condition leads to memory corruption and application crash. |
Risk And Classification
Primary CVSS: v4.0 6.8 MEDIUM from [email protected]
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:A/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X
EPSS: 0.003950000 probability, percentile 0.316940000 (date 2026-07-14)
Problem Types: CWE-121 | CWE-121 CWE-121 Stack-based Buffer Overflow
| Version | Source | Type | Score | Severity | Vector |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4.0 | [email protected] | Secondary | 6.8 | MEDIUM | CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:A/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/C... |
| 4.0 | CNA | CVSS | 6.8 | MEDIUM | CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:A/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N |
| 3.1 | [email protected] | Primary | 9.8 | CRITICAL | CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H |
CVSS v4.0 Breakdown
Attack Vector
NetworkAttack Complexity
LowAttack Requirements
NonePrivileges Required
LowUser Interaction
ActiveConfidentiality
NoneIntegrity
NoneAvailability
HighSub Conf.
NoneSub Integrity
NoneSub Availability
NoneCVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:A/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X
CVSS v3.1 Breakdown
Attack Vector
NetworkAttack Complexity
LowPrivileges Required
NoneUser Interaction
NoneScope
UnchangedConfidentiality
HighIntegrity
HighAvailability
HighCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
NVD Known Affected Configurations (CPE 2.3)
Vendor Declared Affected Products
References
| Reference | Source | Link | Tags |
|---|---|---|---|
| github.com/RIOT-OS/RIOT | [email protected] | github.com | Product |
| www.riot-os.org | [email protected] | www.riot-os.org | Product |
| seclists.org/fulldisclosure/2026/Jan/16 | [email protected] | seclists.org | Mailing List, Third Party Advisory |
| www.vulncheck.com/advisories/riot-os-stack-based-buffer-overflow-in-ethos-seria... | [email protected] | www.vulncheck.com | Third Party Advisory |
| CVE Program record | CVE.ORG | www.cve.org | canonical |
| NVD vulnerability detail | NVD | nvd.nist.gov | canonical, analysis |
Vendor Comments And Credit
Discovery Credit
CNA: Ron Edgerson (en)
There are currently no legacy QID mappings associated with this CVE.