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PatchSiren cyber security CVE debrief

CVE-2026-44062 Netatalk CVE debrief

CVE-2026-44062 is a high-severity vulnerability reported in Netatalk-related advisory material and indexed by NVD on 2026-05-21. The issue is described as a missing output length bounds check in pull_charset_flags(), which can let a remote authenticated attacker execute arbitrary code or trigger a denial of service using crafted character set data. NVD lists the weakness as CWE-787 and assigns a CVSS 3.1 score of 7.5 (HIGH).

Vendor
Netatalk
Product
Unknown
CVSS
HIGH 7.5
CISA KEV
Not listed in stored evidence
Original CVE published
2026-05-21
Original CVE updated
2026-05-21
Advisory published
2026-05-21
Advisory updated
2026-05-21

Who should care

Administrators and security teams running Netatalk, especially where authenticated remote access is exposed or where the service processes untrusted character set data. Asset owners with internet-facing or broadly reachable file-sharing services should prioritize review.

Technical summary

NVD describes the flaw as a missing output length bounds check in pull_charset_flags(). The consequence is memory corruption consistent with CWE-787 (out-of-bounds write), with potential impact including arbitrary code execution or service crash. The CVSS vector indicates network attackability, low attacker privileges, no user interaction, and high impact to confidentiality, integrity, and availability (AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H). The NVD record references a Netatalk advisory URL, but the corpus provided here does not include the advisory text itself.

Defensive priority

High. Because the reported impact includes arbitrary code execution and denial of service, this issue merits prompt triage and patch verification on any Netatalk deployment.

Recommended defensive actions

  • Identify all Netatalk deployments and confirm whether any affected versions are in use (2.0.4 through 4.4.2 per the CVE description).
  • Apply the vendor fix or upgrade to a version that the Netatalk advisory identifies as remediated.
  • If immediate patching is not possible, restrict access to the service to trusted networks and limit authenticated user exposure.
  • Review logs and crash reports for signs of abnormal behavior around character set handling.
  • Prioritize remediation on systems that expose Netatalk to broader network segments or multiple authenticated users.

Evidence notes

All conclusions are based on the supplied NVD record and the referenced Netatalk advisory link. The corpus explicitly states a missing output length bounds check in pull_charset_flags(), affected versions 2.0.4 through 4.4.2, potential RCE/DoS impact, CVSS 7.5 HIGH, and CWE-787. Vendor attribution in the supplied metadata is weak/needs review, so the Netatalk association is treated cautiously and only where supported by the record's description and reference URL.

Official resources

Publicly disclosed in NVD on 2026-05-21. The supplied timeline does not include a KEV date, and no known ransomware campaign use was provided.