CVE-2026-22693 PUBLISHED

Null Pointer Dereference in SubtableUnicodesCache::create leading to DoS

Assigner: GitHub_M
Reserved: 08.01.2026 Published: 10.01.2026 Updated: 12.01.2026

HarfBuzz is a text shaping engine. Prior to version 12.3.0, a null pointer dereference vulnerability exists in the SubtableUnicodesCache::create function located in src/hb-ot-cmap-table.hh. The function fails to check if hb_malloc returns NULL before using placement new to construct an object at the returned pointer address. When hb_malloc fails to allocate memory (which can occur in low-memory conditions or when using custom allocators that simulate allocation failures), it returns NULL. The code then attempts to call the constructor on this null pointer using placement new syntax, resulting in undefined behavior and a Segmentation Fault. This issue has been patched in version 12.3.0.

Metrics

CVSS Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L
CVSS Score: 5.3

Product Status

Vendor harfbuzz
Product harfbuzz
Versions
  • Version < 12.3.0 is affected

References

Problem Types

  • CWE-476: NULL Pointer Dereference CWE