# CVE-2026-9771: Missing device-pointer validation in flash_copy() syscall allows userspace privilege escalation

> An unprivileged user can escalate privileges to kernel mode by exploiting missing device pointer validation in the flash_copy syscall.

- **Severity:** High 8.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 17 Aug 2026
- **Updated:** 17 Aug 2026
- **Also known as:** GHSA-68cj-3hg4-5vpm

## What is CVE-2026-9771?

CVE-2026-9771 is a high-severity missing authorization vulnerability in zephyrproject zephyr, published on 17 Aug 2026. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

The flash_copy() system call is verified by z_vrfy_flash_copy() in drivers/flash/flash_util.c. On builds with CONFIG_USERSPACE enabled, this handler is the kernel-side trust boundary for a user-mode caller. Prior to the fix it validated only the output buffer (K_SYSCALL_MEMORY_WRITE) and passed the two struct device * arguments, src_dev and dst_dev, directly into the implementation without any object validation — unlike every sibling flash syscall, which guards its device pointer with K_SYSCALL_DRIVER_FLASH.

A user-mode thread fully controls the values of src_dev/dst_dev and the contents of its own address space. The implementation z_impl_flash_copy() dereferences these pointers and calls through their driver-API function tables (e.g. api->get_parameters(dst_dev), flash_read(src_dev, ...), flash_write(dst_dev, ...)). By supplying a pointer to a forged struct device whose api table contains attacker-chosen function pointers, an unprivileged thread can cause the kernel to call arbitrary code in supervisor mode; passing any arbitrary or invalid address otherwise yields a kernel crash or out-of-bounds read.

The result is a local privilege escalation out of the userspace sandbox (with kernel denial-of-service and information disclosure as lesser outcomes). The fix adds K_SYSCALL_DRIVER_FLASH(src_dev, read) and K_SYSCALL_DRIVER_FLASH(dst_dev, write) to z_vrfy_flash_copy(), which verify each device is a registered flash-driver kernel object the calling thread is permitted to use before any dereference, closing the path completely.

Weakness: CWE-862 (Missing Authorization), CWE-822 (Untrusted Pointer Dereference)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-9771?


## How do I fix CVE-2026-9771?

No fix has been published for CVE-2026-9771 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2026-9771 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-9771 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-9771 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-9771 is a high-severity missing authorization vulnerability in zephyrproject zephyr, published on 17 Aug 2026. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-9771 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: zephyrproject zephyr. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-9771/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-9771/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-9771
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-9771
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-9771

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From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-9771/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.