Vulnerability record · CVE-2026-42546 · published 6 July 2026
CVE-2026-42546: Trustedfirmware op-tee allocation without limits vulnerability
Trustedfirmware · Op Tee
OP-TEE is a Trusted Execution Environment (TEE) designed as companion to a non-secure Linux kernel running on Arm; Cortex-A cores using the TrustZone technology. Starting in version 3.3.0 and prior to version 4.11.0, a resource leak exists in OP-TEE’s shared memory cleanup logic because the function `cleanup_shm_refs()` in `core/tee/entry_std.c` fails to apply a required bitmask (`OPTEE_MSG_ATTR_TYPE_MASK`) to parameter attributes. When processing non-contiguous memory parameters from a normal-world caller, the system fails to match the attribute type in its internal switch statement and skips the necessary mobj_put() call. This results in a persistent reference leak of `mobj_reg_shm` objects, which remain on internal lists with dangling refcounts. This affects non-FF-A configurations that support non-contiguous, non-secure shared memory. Over time, these accumulated leaks progressively consume the secure-world heap, degrading the system's ability to service trusted application operations and eventually requiring a reboot to recover. Version 4.11.0 contains a patch. No known workarounds are available.
Description
OP-TEE is a Trusted Execution Environment (TEE) designed as companion to a non-secure Linux kernel running on Arm; Cortex-A cores using the TrustZone technology. Starting in version 3.3.0 and prior to version 4.11.0, a resource leak exists in OP-TEE’s shared memory cleanup logic because the function `cleanup_shm_refs()` in `core/tee/entry_std.c` fails to apply a required bitmask (`OPTEE_MSG_ATTR_TYPE_MASK`) to parameter attributes. When processing non-contiguous memory parameters from a normal-world caller, the system fails to match the attribute type in its internal switch statement and skips the necessary mobj_put() call. This results in a persistent reference leak of `mobj_reg_shm` objects, which remain on internal lists with dangling refcounts. This affects non-FF-A configurations that support non-contiguous, non-secure shared memory. Over time, these accumulated leaks progressively consume the secure-world heap, degrading the system's ability to service trusted application operations and eventually requiring a reboot to recover. Version 4.11.0 contains a patch. No known workarounds are available.
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:L
Affected products
1 vulnerable configurations from NVD's CPE data, grouped by vendor and product.
References
| Link | Tags |
|---|---|
| https://github.com/OP-TEE/optee_os/security/advisories/GHSA-c7j8-fgqw-rcgp | Vendor Advisory |
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Related vulnerabilities
Same products first, then exploited flaws of the same weakness class.
Source: NIST National Vulnerability Database (record CVE-2026-42546), CISA KEV, FIRST EPSS (scores of 2026-10-02). This page is refreshed as NVD updates the record.
