CVE-2026-104042: sssd PAM responder denial of service via out-of-bounds read

CVE-2026-104042 · Severity: medium · CVSS 5.5 · Published 2026-10-06

sssd is a system service that handles user authentication and authorization on Linux systems. A local attacker can crash the PAM responder component by sending a specially crafted authentication request with a zero-length token, disrupting authentication services until the service is manually restarted.

Technologies: Sssd.

Quick answers

Is CVE-2026-104042 exploited in the wild?
No. Junglewise Threat Intelligence has no report of CVE-2026-104042 being exploited in the wild.
How severe is CVE-2026-104042?
Medium severity, with a CVSS score of 5.5, published 6 October 2026.
Which products and versions are affected?
sssd.
Is there a fix for CVE-2026-104042?
No fixed version is recorded yet. Check the vendor's advisory in the references below. If you run it, Junglewise drafts a mitigation that fits your setup and applies it once you approve, with senior security engineers behind it.
How is CVE-2026-104042 attacked?
It is attacked with local access.
Am I affected by CVE-2026-104042?
Check whether you run Sssd. Junglewise does that check for you around the clock: connect your code, cloud and domains, and it matches new vulnerabilities like this one against what you actually run and tells you when one reaches you.

Technical details

Out-of-bounds read vulnerability (CWE-125) in sssd's PAM responder caused by missing input validation on authentication tokens. A local attacker with low privileges can send a zero-length authentication token to the responder socket, causing the service to read beyond buffer boundaries and crash. No privilege escalation or data exposure occurs; impact is limited to denial of service.

Affected products

  • sssd

Timeline

  • 2026-10-06: disclosed

References

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