Cloud NGFW: Incorrect Calculation of Buffer Size
CVE-2026-0280 is a high-severity incorrect calculation of buffer size vulnerability in Cloud NGFW from Palo Alto Networks, with a CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.2 out of 10. It can be exploited remotely over the network by an unauthenticated attacker, without any action from a user. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.34% chance of exploitation within 30 days, which is low compared with other CVEs.
High severity with no evidence of exploitation so far.
What to do
- Update PAN-OS to 12.1.8 or 11.2.13 or 11.1.16 or 10.2.18-h8, whichever matches your release line, or a later version.
- Update Prisma Access to 11.2.7-h18 or 10.2.10-h39, whichever matches your release line, or a later version.
- Read the advisory on security.paloaltonetworks.com for workarounds and exact fixed builds.
- Until you can update, restrict network access to the affected service so it is not reachable from untrusted networks.
Affected products and versions
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Palo Alto Networks | Cloud NGFW | Not specified in the record | Not stated |
| Palo Alto Networks | PAN-OS | 12.1.0 up to, but not including, 12.1.8; 11.2.0 up to, but not including, 11.2.13; 11.1.0 up to, but not including, 11.1.16; 10.2.0 up to, but not including, 10.2.18-h8 | 12.1.8, 11.2.13, 11.1.16, 10.2.18-h8 |
| Palo Alto Networks | Panorama | Not specified in the record | Not stated |
| Palo Alto Networks | Prisma Access | 11.2.0 up to, but not including, 11.2.7-h18; 10.2.0 up to, but not including, 10.2.10-h39 | 11.2.7-h18, 10.2.10-h39 |
| Siemens | RUGGEDCOM APE1808 | all versions | Not stated |
Version data comes from the organisation that assigned the CVE. Confirm against the vendor advisory before deciding you are unaffected.
How the severity score breaks down
- Attack vector
- NetworkCan be exploited remotely over a network, including the internet.
- Attack complexity
- LowNo special conditions are needed; the attack works reliably.
- Privileges required
- NoneNo account or login is needed.
- User interaction
- NoneNo action by a victim is required.
- Scope
- ChangedThe attack can reach beyond the vulnerable component into other systems.
- Confidentiality
- LowSome restricted data can be read.
- Integrity
- LowLimited modification of data is possible.
- Availability
- NoneAvailability is not affected.
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N. Scored by NVD.
| Scoring system | Score | Severity | Scored by |
|---|---|---|---|
| CVSS 4.0 | 1.7 | Low | CNA (paloaltonetworks.com) |
| CVSS 3.1 | 7.2 | High | NVD |
Official description
An IPv6 packet processing vulnerability in the dataplane of Palo Alto Networks PAN-OS® software enables an unauthenticated attacker to bypass firewall security policy enforcement, allowing network traffic that should be blocked to reach protected services. Cloud NGFW and Panorama are not impacted by this vulnerability.
Source: the CVE record as published by its numbering authority, via NVD and CVE.org.
The underlying weakness: Incorrect Calculation of Buffer Size
The product does not correctly calculate the size to be used when allocating a buffer.
How developers prevent this class of flaw
- When allocating a buffer for the purpose of transforming, converting, or encoding an input, allocate enough memory to handle the largest possible encoding. For example, in a routine that converts & characters to & for HTML entity encoding, the output buffer needs to be at least 5 times as large as the input buffer.
- Understand the programming language's underlying representation and how it interacts with numeric calculation (CWE-681). Pay close attention to byte size discrepancies, precision, signed/unsigned distinctions, truncation, conversion and casting between types, not-a-number calculations, and how the language handles numbers that are too large or too small for its underlying representation. Also be careful to account for 32-bit, 64-bit, and other potential differences that may affect the numeric representation.
- Perform input validation on any numeric input by ensuring that it is within the expected range. Enforce that the input meets both the minimum and maximum requirements for the expected range.
More Incorrect Calculation of Buffer Size vulnerabilities (CWE-131)
Timeline
- CVE record published.
- CISA published its SSVC assessment (exploitation: none, automatable: no, technical impact: partial).
- Record last changed materially (score, affected products, status or references).
References
Other references
Other vulnerabilities in Cloud NGFW
- 7.2 High severity
Palo Alto Networks PAN-OS Code Injection Exploited
- 7.2 High severity
- 7.5 High severity
- 7.5 High severity
- 7.2 High severity
- 9.9 Critical severity
Recent Incorrect Calculation of Buffer Size vulnerabilities
- 8.4 High severity
- 7.5 High severity
- 7.5 High severity
- 9.3 Critical severity
- 9.8 Critical severity
- 7.5 High severity
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