HOMEVULNERABILITIESCVE-2026-31973
HIGH

CVE-2026-31973

CWE-476Published: March 18, 2026· Updated: Mar 19, 2026

7.5
CVSS v3.1
EPSS:0.01%probability of exploitation in 30 daysPercentile:1.9th

Official Description

SAMtools is a program for reading, manipulating and writing bioinformatics file formats. Starting in version 1.17, in the cram-size command, used to write information about how well CRAM files are compressed, a check to see if the `cram_decode_compression_header()` was missing. If the function returned an error, this could lead to a NULL pointer dereference. Exploiting this bug causes a NULL pointer dereference. Typically this will cause the program to crash. Versions 1.23.1, 1.22.2 and 1.21.1 include fixes for this issue. There is no workaround for this issue.

NVD Source

Technical Analysis

CVE-2026-31973 can be exploited remotely over the network without requiring physical or adjacent access, significantly expanding the attack surface for threat actors.

The vulnerability requires no privileges and no user interaction, making it a prime target for automated exploitation campaigns and worm-like propagation.

A successful exploit results in availability disruption (denial of service), with a CVSS base score of 7.5.

CVSS v3.1 Vector Breakdown

Exploitability
Attack VectorNetwork
Attack ComplexityLow
Privileges Req.None
User InteractionNone
ScopeUnchanged
Impact
ConfidentialityNone
IntegrityNone
AvailabilityHigh
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

Affected Vendors & Products

samtools1 product
samtools
Source: NVD CPE · 2 total CPE entries

Exploit & PoC Resources

NO KNOWN EXPLOITNo public exploit confirmed at this time
Exploit-DB
Offensive Security exploit database
GitHub PoC Search
Community PoC repositories
Rapid7 / Metasploit
Metasploit module search
PacketStorm
Security advisories & exploits
NVD Detail
Official NIST entry
MITRE CVE
CVE Program entry
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Official Patches & Advisories

PATCHhttps://github.com/samtools/samtools/commit/06fc2a219b3d7c94d3f412c09f6d1efd51199f2f
ADVISORYhttps://github.com/samtools/samtools/security/advisories/GHSA-x86f-q6fj-cm43
ADVISORYhttp://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2026/03/18/12

All References (3)

→
https://github.com/samtools/samtools/commit/06fc2a219b3d7c94d3f412c09f6d1efd51199f2fPatch
→
https://github.com/samtools/samtools/security/advisories/GHSA-x86f-q6fj-cm43Vendor Advisory
→
http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2026/03/18/12Mailing List · Third Party Advisory

Quick Facts

CVE IDCVE-2026-31973
CVSS Score7.5 / 10
SeverityHIGH
WeaknessCWE-476
CISA KEVNo
EPSS (30d)0.01%
Affected1 vendor
PublishedMar 18, 2026

Related CVEs (CWE-476)

CVE-2026-13084
8.7
CVE-2026-33063
8.7
CVE-2026-28224
8.2
CVE-2025-59604
7.8
CVE-2025-59606
7.8
CVE-2026-31792
7.8

Recommended Actions

  • →Apply vendor patches immediately
  • →Monitor CVE-2026-31973 in threat intel feeds
  • →Review IDS/IPS signatures for exploitation attempts
Data sourced from NVD (NIST), CISA KEV, and EPSS (FIRST). Analysis generated by CTIWATCH.COM. CVE data is provided under the NVD usage policy.
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