Null Pointer Dereference in GNU Binutils Affecting ELF Binaries

CVE-2025-69649

What is CVE-2025-69649?

The GNU Binutils, specifically versions through 2.46, are susceptible to a null pointer dereference when handling ELF binaries with improperly formed headers. This flaw manifests during the relocation process where an invalid or null section pointer may be utilized within the display_relocations() function, leading to a segmentation fault (SIGSEGV) and causing the application to terminate unexpectedly. While this vulnerability does not appear to result in memory corruption or provide avenues for execution of arbitrary code, it disrupts normal operations when processing corrupted ELF files.

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