CVE-2026-17052: Zephyr RTOS Time-aware GPIO syscall memory write check bypass

CVE-2026-17052 · Severity: high · CVSS 7.8 · Published 2026-09-21

Zephyr RTOS is a real-time operating system used in embedded and IoT devices. A flaw in the Time-aware GPIO driver's syscall handler allows an unprivileged user-mode thread with GPIO device access to write arbitrary data to kernel memory addresses, potentially escalating privileges or crashing the system. This requires enabling specific build options (CONFIG_USERSPACE and CONFIG_TIMEAWARE_GPIO) and affects only certain versions where build breakage was locally corrected or in v3.5.0 and earlier.

Technologies: Zephyr RTOS. Vendors: Zephyr.

Quick answers

Is CVE-2026-17052 exploited in the wild?
No. Junglewise Threat Intelligence has no report of CVE-2026-17052 being exploited in the wild.
How severe is CVE-2026-17052?
High severity, with a CVSS score of 7.8, published 21 September 2026.
Which products and versions are affected?
Zephyr RTOS v3.5.0 and earlier; v3.6.0 to v4.4.0 (with local build fixes); potentially affected versions post-v4.4.0 if locally corrected.
Is there a fix for CVE-2026-17052?
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-2026-17052 attacked?
It is attacked with local access, in an operating system.
Am I affected by CVE-2026-17052?
Check whether you run Zephyr RTOS at an affected version. 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

The z_vrfy_tgpio_pin_read_ts_ec() syscall handler in drivers/timeaware_gpio/timeaware_gpio_handlers.c fails to validate output pointer parameters with K_SYSCALL_MEMORY_WRITE(), unlike similar handlers in the same file. This allows a user-mode caller with TGPIO device access to supply arbitrary kernel addresses, which are then written to by tgpio_intel_read_ts_ec() in the driver, creating a write-what-where primitive. The attack requires CONFIG_USERSPACE=y and CONFIG_TIMEAWARE_GPIO=y; exposure is narrowed to v3.5.0, downstream trees that locally fixed build breakage, and is absent from v4.4.0 onward unless affected builds were locally patched.

Affected products

  • Zephyr RTOS v3.5.0 and earlier; v3.6.0 to v4.4.0 (with local build fixes); potentially affected versions post-v4.4.0 if locally corrected

Timeline

  • 2026-09-21: disclosed
  • 2026-09-21: advisory

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