Quick answer
Direct answer
Risk scores
| CVSS metric | What it means |
|---|---|
| Attack vector (AV:N) | Network: reachable remotely |
| Attack complexity (AC:L) | Low complexity |
| Privileges required (PR:N) | No privileges required |
| User interaction (UI:N) | No user interaction |
| Scope (S:U) | Scope unchanged |
| Confidentiality (C:H) | High confidentiality impact |
| Integrity (I:H) | High integrity impact |
| Availability (A:H) | High availability impact |
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
About Perl Dbi
CVE-2026-9698 affects Perl Dbi, a product from Perl. Before acting, confirm where Perl Dbi runs in your estate, who owns it and whether it is reachable from the internet, because exposure decides real risk more than the score alone.
What the flaw is
In plain terms: DBI versions before 1.648 for Perl saved errors in a limited-sized buffer. Error messages that were returned when RaiseError, PrintError or HandleError were set were written to a 200-byte buffer without a length limit. Attackers that can influence the error text in an application can trigger a buffer overflow.
The weakness class is Out of Bounds Write. The program writes past the end of a buffer, a common path to code execution.
Based on its CVSS vector, the flaw can be reached over the network, needs no login, and needs no user interaction. Apply the vendor fix and confirm exposure on internet facing and business critical assets first.
Affected versions and timeline
| Field | Detail |
|---|---|
| Product | Perl Dbi |
| Affected versions | Dbi before 1.648 |
| Published | Jun 9, 2026 |
| Last modified | Sep 3, 2026 |
| Added to CISA KEV | Not listed |
| Assigning CNA | 9b29abf9-4ab0-4765-b253-1875cd9b441e |
How to detect it
- Inventory every instance of Perl Dbi and record the running version against the affected range above.
- Check external attack surface scans for internet facing instances of the component.
- Review logs on affected systems for unusual requests, errors or new processes around the vulnerable function.
- Confirm with an authenticated vulnerability scan once your scanner has a check for this CVE.
How to fix it
- Apply the fixed version of Perl Dbi named in the vendor advisory.
- If patching must wait, restrict network access to the affected service and put it behind authentication or a web application firewall rule.
- Rescan after the change to prove the exposure is gone, then close the ticket.
CTEM action plan
| CTEM stage | What to do for this CVE |
|---|---|
| Scope | Add every business service that depends on Perl Dbi to the current CTEM cycle. |
| Discover | Find all instances, including shadow and cloud deployments, and record versions and exposure. |
| Prioritize | Rank using EPSS and CVSS together with asset exposure and business impact. |
| Validate | Confirm the flaw is reachable and exploitable in your environment and that compensating controls work. |
| Mobilize | Assign the fix to the asset owner with a due date matched to the priority, then verify closure. |
CWE References
- CWE-787: Out of Bounds Write More CVEs with this weakness
- CWE-120: Classic Buffer Overflow More CVEs with this weakness
Technical References
- ▸NVD entry
- ▸CVE.org record
- ▸Fix commit on GitHub
- ▸Advisory on metacpan.org
- ▸Openwall oss security mailing list
- ▸Red Hat security advisory
- ▸Red Hat security advisory
- ▸Red Hat security advisory
- ▸Red Hat security advisory
- ▸Red Hat security advisory
- ▸Red Hat security advisory
- ▸Red Hat security advisory
- ▸Red Hat security advisory
Frequently asked questions
Related CVEs
Perl versions before 5.40.5-RC1, from 5.41.0 before 5.42.3-RC1, from 5.43.0 before 5.43.11 have an integer overflow in S_measure_struct leading to an out-of-bounds heap read in pack and unpack. S_measure_struct adds each item's size times its repeat count to a running total with no overflow check, so a large repeat count in a pack or unpack template wraps the signed SSize_t total negative. The @, X, and x position codes then guard their moves with a signed length comparison that passes when the length is negative, advancing the buffer pointer out of bounds. A template derived from untrusted input can read heap memory past the buffer and return it to the caller.
Perl versions before 5.40.5-RC1, from 5.41.0 before 5.42.3-RC1, from 5.43.0 before 5.43.10 produce silently incorrect regular expression matches when an alternation of more than 65535 fixed string branches is compiled into a trie in Perl_study_chunk. When such branches are combined into a trie, the delta between the first branch and the shared tail is stored in a 16-bit field. A branch count above 65535 overflows the field, and the trie's match decision table is truncated with no warning or error. A pattern of this shape produces false positive matches (matching strings it should not) and false negative matches (failing to match strings it should). When such a pattern gates an access or filtering decision, the result is wrong.
Perl versions before 5.40.5-RC1, from 5.41.0 before 5.42.3-RC1, from 5.43.0 before 5.43.11 have a heap buffer overflow when compiling regular expressions with a repeated fixed string on 32-bit builds. Perl_study_chunk in regcomp_study.c checked the size of the joined substring buffer in characters rather than bytes. For a quantified fixed substring with a large minimum count, the byte length mincount * l could overflow SSize_t, producing an undersized SvGROW allocation; the subsequent copy writes past the end of the buffer. A caller that compiles an attacker-controlled regular expression on a 32-bit perl build triggers a heap buffer overflow at compile time.
Out-of-bounds Write, Buffer Copy without Checking Size of Input ('Classic Buffer Overflow') vulnerability in azerothcore azerothcore-wotlk (deps/zlib modules). This vulnerability is associated with program files inflate.C. This issue affects azerothcore-wotlk: through v4.0.0.
There is a possible out of bounds write due to a missing bounds check. This could lead to local escalation of privilege with no additional execution privileges needed. User interaction is not needed for exploitation.
Kitty is a cross-platform GPU based terminal. In versions 0.46.2 and below, the handle_compose_command() function in kitty/graphics.c performs bounds validation on composition offsets using unsigned 32-bit arithmetic that is subject to integer wrapping, potentially leading to Heap Buffer Over-Read/Write. An attacker who can write escape sequences to a kitty terminal (e.g., via a malicious file, SSH login banner, or piped content) can supply crafted x_offset/y_offset values that pass the bounds check after wrapping but cause massive out-of-bounds heap memory access in compose_rectangles(). No user interaction is required. No non-default configuration is required. The attacker only needs the ability to produce output in a kitty terminal window. This issue has been fixed in version 0.47.0.
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