High severity · published May 27, 2026
CVE-2026-44988
LibVNCClient Tight Gradient decoding allows malicious server-triggered heap/stack OOB writes
8.8
CVSS
0.2%
EPSS
No
On KEV
Description
LibVNCClient is a library for easy implementation of a VNC client. In 0.9.15 and earlier, LibVNCClient's Tight encoding decoder uses fixed-size 2048-pixel scratch buffers for the Gradient filter, but it does not reject Tight rectangles whose width is larger than 2048 pixels. A malicious VNC server can send a crafted FramebufferUpdate rectangle using Tight encoding with NoZlib | ExplicitFilter and the Gradient filter. When a LibVNCClient-based client connects, the client processes the server-controlled rectangle width and writes beyond fixed-size Gradient buffers. This vulnerability is fixed with commit 5b270544b85233668b98161323297d418a8f5fd1.
CVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
Required
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High
Scope
Unchanged
Exploitation
Is it being used?
Exploit prediction (EPSS)0.2% · higher than 15% of CVEs
Exploited in the wildNo evidence yet
CISA KEVNot listed
Ransomware campaign useNot known
Affected products
Which versions
LI
libvncserver · LibVNC
<= 0.9.15 · source: vendor
References
NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-44988
CVE.org
https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-44988
github.com
https://github.com/LibVNC/libvncserver/commit/5b270544b85233668b98161323297d418a8f5fd1
github.com
https://github.com/LibVNC/libvncserver/security/advisories/GHSA-jcc5-8wj4-7c58
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