Description
GNU Aspell 0.60.8.2 (first vulnerable version is not known) contains a heap-based buffer overflow write (CWE-122) in its read-only dictionary loader. String::reserve() in common/string.hpp computes its capacity check with a signed int ((int)s + 1), so a requested size of 0x7FFFFFFF wraps negative and the backing buffer is never grown. ReadOnlyDict::load() in modules/speller/default/readonly_ws.cpp passes the unvalidated 32-bit size fields from a .rws dictionary header into this path, so a crafted .rws file with a valid endian marker (12345678) and an oversized length field (e.g. lang_name_size = 0x7FFFFFFF) causes attacker-controlled data to be written out of bounds past an undersized heap allocation. An attacker who induces a victim to load a malicious dictionary — for example via aspell dump master <file> — can corrupt heap memory, resulting in denial of service and potentially code execution. Fixed in b830b6e and will be fixed in release 0.60.8.3.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected | Fixed |
|---|---|---|---|
| GNU | Aspell | 0.60.8.2 | — |
Fixed in Linux distributions
Distributions backport fixes, so the version that fixes this vulnerability differs per release — upgrade to at least the version shown. From the distributions' security trackers and advisories.
Debian
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debian 14 | aspell | 0.60.8.2-4 | — |
| Debian 13 | aspell | No fix yet | — |
| Debian 12 | aspell | No fix yet | — |
Ubuntu
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu 26.10 | aspell | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 26.04 LTS | aspell | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 24.04 LTS | aspell | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 22.04 LTS | aspell | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 20.04 LTS | aspell | No fix yet | — |
Show 3 more (older releases, extended support, other products)Fewer releases
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu 18.04 LTS | aspell | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu Pro 16.04 LTS | aspell | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu Pro 14.04 LTS | aspell | No fix yet | — |
Red Hat
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| RHEL 10 | aspell +1 | 12:0.60.8.1-3.el10_3.1 | RHSA-2026:98590 |
| RHEL 9 | aspell +1 | 12:0.60.8-9.el9_8 | RHSA-2026:92458 |
| RHEL 8 | aspell +1 | 12:0.60.6.1-23.el8_10 | RHSA-2026:92615 |
Show 4 more (older releases, extended support, other products)Fewer releases
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| RHEL 10.2 EUS | aspell +1 | 12:0.60.8.1-3.el10_2.1 | RHSA-2026:99046 |
| RHEL 9.6 EUS | aspell +1 | 12:0.60.8-8.el9_6.1 | RHSA-2026:99511 |
| RHEL 8.8 TUS | aspell | 12:0.60.6.1-22.el8_8.1 | RHSA-2026:99575 |
| RHEL 8.8 E4S | aspell | 12:0.60.6.1-22.el8_8.1 | RHSA-2026:99575 |
AlmaLinux
Errata ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| AlmaLinux 9 | aspell +1 | 12:0.60.8-9.el9_8 | ALSA-2026:92458 |
| AlmaLinux 8 | aspell +1 | 12:0.60.6.1-23.el8_10 | ALSA-2026:92615 |
Rocky Linux
Errata ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rocky Linux 10 | aspell +1 | 2:0.60.8.1-3.el10_3.1 | RLSA-2026:98590 |
| Rocky Linux 9 | aspell | 2:0.60.8-9.el9_8 | RLSA-2026:92458 |
| Rocky Linux 8 | aspell | 2:0.60.6.1-23.el8_10 | RLSA-2026:92615 |
SUSE
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| SLES 15 SP7 | aspell | 0.60.8-150200.3.8.1 | SUSE-SU-2026:5134-1 |
| SLES 15 SP6 | aspell | 0.60.8-150200.3.8.1 | SUSE-SU-2026:5134-1 |
| SLES 15 SP5 | aspell | 0.60.8-150200.3.8.1 | SUSE-SU-2026:5134-1 |
| SLES 15 SP4 | aspell | 0.60.8-150200.3.8.1 | SUSE-SU-2026:5134-1 |
| SLES 12 SP5 | aspell | 0.60.6.1-18.18.1 | SUSE-SU-2026:5163-1 |
Show 5 more (older releases, extended support, other products)Fewer releases
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| SLES for SAP 15 SP6 | aspell | 0.60.8-150200.3.8.1 | SUSE-SU-2026:5134-1 |
| SLES for SAP 15 SP5 | aspell | 0.60.8-150200.3.8.1 | SUSE-SU-2026:5134-1 |
| SLES for SAP 15 SP4 | aspell | 0.60.8-150200.3.8.1 | SUSE-SU-2026:5134-1 |
| SLE HPC 15 SP5 | aspell | 0.60.8-150200.3.8.1 | SUSE-SU-2026:5134-1 |
| SLE HPC 15 SP4 | aspell | 0.60.8-150200.3.8.1 | SUSE-SU-2026:5134-1 |
openSUSE
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| openSUSE Tumbleweed | aspell | 0.60.8.2-3.1 | openSUSE-SU-2026:12126-1 |
| openSUSE Leap 16.0 | aspell | 0.60.8.1-160000.3.1 | openSUSE-SU-2026:22272-1 |
Amazon Linux
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon Linux 2023 | aspell +1 | 12:0.60.8-7.amzn2023.0.3 | ALAS2023-2026-3275 |
| Amazon Linux 2 | aspell +1 | 12:0.60.6.1-22.amzn2.0.1 | ALAS2-2026-4022 |
Azure Linux
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Azure Linux 3 | aspell | 0.60.8.1-2 | — |
Oracle Linux
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oracle Linux 9 | aspell +1 | 12:0.60.8-9.el9_8 | ELSA-2026-92458 |
| Oracle Linux 8 | aspell +1 | 12:0.60.6.1-23.el8_10 | ELSA-2026-92615 |
Advisories 20
- openSUSE-SU-2026:22272-1 Security update for aspell SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Nov 14, 2026
- RHSA-2026:99575 Red Hat Security Advisory: aspell security update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Nov 13, 2026
- RHSA-2026:99511 Red Hat Security Advisory: aspell security update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Nov 13, 2026
- RHSA-2026:99046 Red Hat Security Advisory: aspell security update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Nov 13, 2026
- RHSA-2026:98590 Red Hat Security Advisory: aspell security update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Nov 13, 2026
- RHSA-2026:92615 Red Hat Security Advisory: aspell security update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Nov 13, 2026
- RHSA-2026:92458 Red Hat Security Advisory: aspell security update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Nov 13, 2026
- RLSA-2026:98590 Important: aspell security update Rocky Linux Security Advisories · Nov 13, 2026
- WID-SEC-2026-4243 Red Hat Enterprise Linux (pillow and aspell): Mehrere Schwachstellen BSI CERT-Bund (WID) · Nov 12, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2026:5163-1 Security update for aspell SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Nov 10, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2026:5134-1 Security update for aspell SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Nov 10, 2026
- ALSA-2026:92458 Important: aspell security update AlmaLinux Security Advisories · Oct 30, 2026
- RLSA-2026:92458 Important: aspell security update Rocky Linux Security Advisories · Oct 30, 2026
- RLSA-2026:92615 Important: aspell security update Rocky Linux Security Advisories · Oct 30, 2026
- ALSA-2026:92615 Important: aspell security update AlmaLinux Security Advisories · Oct 30, 2026
- ELSA-2026-92458 Important: aspell security update (Oracle Linux 9) Oracle Linux Security Advisories (ELSA) · Oct 30, 2026
- ELSA-2026-92615 Important: aspell security update (Oracle Linux 8) Oracle Linux Security Advisories (ELSA) · Oct 29, 2026
- ALAS2023-2026-3275 Important: aspell security update (Amazon Linux 2023) Amazon Linux Security Center (ALAS) · Oct 26, 2026
- ALAS2-2026-4022 Important: aspell security update (Amazon Linux 2) Amazon Linux Security Center (ALAS) · Oct 26, 2026
- openSUSE-SU-2026:12126-1 aspell-0.60.8.2-3.1 on GA media SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Oct 15, 2026