# CVE-2025-69651: binutils: GNU Binutils thru 2.46 readelf contains a vulnerability that leads to an invalid pointer free when processing a craft...

CVE-2025-69651 is fixed in 12 products on 1 platform, first by DEBIAN-CVE-2025-69651, released March 6, 2026. It is not reported as exploited. Patch Radar priority: Routine.

- Web page: https://patchblox.com/security/cve/CVE-2025-69651
- Priority: Routine
- CVSS: 5.5 (medium)
- EPSS: 0.0027
- CISA KEV: not listed
- Exploited (vendor report): no
- Publicly disclosed: no
- Published: Mar 6, 2026

## Description

GNU Binutils thru 2.46 readelf contains a vulnerability that leads to an invalid pointer free when processing a crafted ELF binary with malformed relocation or symbol data. If dump_relocations returns early due to parsing errors, the internal all_relocations array may remain partially uninitialized. Later, process_got_section_contents() may attempt to free an invalid r_symbol pointer, triggering memory corruption checks in glibc and causing the program to terminate with SIGABRT. No evidence of further memory corruption or code execution was observed; the impact is limited to denial of service. NOTE: this is disputed by third parties because the observed behavior occurred only in pre-release code and did not affect any tagged version.

## Where it's fixed

| Platform | Product | Fixed in | Fix | Released |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | binutils Debian 14 | 2.46-1 | [DEBIAN-CVE-2025-69651](https://patchblox.com/security/data/fix/linux/debian-cve-2025-69651.md) | Mar 6, 2026 |
| Linux | mingw-binutils Fedora 43 | 2.45.1-2.fc43 | [FEDORA-2026-9174E6EA37](https://patchblox.com/security/data/fix/linux/fedora-2026-9174e6ea37.md) | Mar 27, 2026 |
| Linux | mingw-binutils-debuginfo Fedora 43 | 2.45.1-2.fc43 | [FEDORA-2026-9174E6EA37](https://patchblox.com/security/data/fix/linux/fedora-2026-9174e6ea37.md) | Mar 27, 2026 |
| Linux | mingw-binutils-debugsource Fedora 43 | 2.45.1-2.fc43 | [FEDORA-2026-9174E6EA37](https://patchblox.com/security/data/fix/linux/fedora-2026-9174e6ea37.md) | Mar 27, 2026 |
| Linux | mingw-binutils-generic Fedora 43 | 2.45.1-2.fc43 | [FEDORA-2026-9174E6EA37](https://patchblox.com/security/data/fix/linux/fedora-2026-9174e6ea37.md) | Mar 27, 2026 |
| Linux | mingw-binutils-generic-debuginfo Fedora 43 | 2.45.1-2.fc43 | [FEDORA-2026-9174E6EA37](https://patchblox.com/security/data/fix/linux/fedora-2026-9174e6ea37.md) | Mar 27, 2026 |
| Linux | mingw32-binutils Fedora 43 | 2.45.1-2.fc43 | [FEDORA-2026-9174E6EA37](https://patchblox.com/security/data/fix/linux/fedora-2026-9174e6ea37.md) | Mar 27, 2026 |
| Linux | mingw32-binutils-debuginfo Fedora 43 | 2.45.1-2.fc43 | [FEDORA-2026-9174E6EA37](https://patchblox.com/security/data/fix/linux/fedora-2026-9174e6ea37.md) | Mar 27, 2026 |
| Linux | mingw64-binutils Fedora 43 | 2.45.1-2.fc43 | [FEDORA-2026-9174E6EA37](https://patchblox.com/security/data/fix/linux/fedora-2026-9174e6ea37.md) | Mar 27, 2026 |
| Linux | mingw64-binutils-debuginfo Fedora 43 | 2.45.1-2.fc43 | [FEDORA-2026-9174E6EA37](https://patchblox.com/security/data/fix/linux/fedora-2026-9174e6ea37.md) | Mar 27, 2026 |
| Linux | ucrt64-binutils Fedora 43 | 2.45.1-2.fc43 | [FEDORA-2026-9174E6EA37](https://patchblox.com/security/data/fix/linux/fedora-2026-9174e6ea37.md) | Mar 27, 2026 |
| Linux | ucrt64-binutils-debuginfo Fedora 43 | 2.45.1-2.fc43 | [FEDORA-2026-9174E6EA37](https://patchblox.com/security/data/fix/linux/fedora-2026-9174e6ea37.md) | Mar 27, 2026 |

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Data as of 2026-11-08T13:06:02Z UTC. Source: Patchblox Patch Radar (https://patchblox.com/security/patch-radar). Patchblox finds out-of-date software on Windows, macOS and Linux and updates it through release rings: https://patchblox.com/demo

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