---
id: "CVE-2026-120740"
kind: "vulnerability"
aliases: ["CVE-2026-120740"]
title: "hivex: crafted registry hive file causes out-of-bounds read and crash"
severity: "low"
cvss: 2.0
epss: null
exploited: false
status: "open"
category: "package"
products: []
ecosystems: []
tags: ["hivex", "package", "registry-parsing"]
not_affected_if: ["trusted-input-only"]
published_at: "2026-11-02T22:17:21+00:00"
first_seen_at: "2026-11-02T22:35:43+00:00"
updated_at: "2026-11-02T22:37:51+00:00"
sources: [{"source": "nvd", "url": "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-120740", "first_seen_at": "2026-11-02T22:35:43+00:00"}]
---

# hivex: crafted registry hive file causes out-of-bounds read and crash

hivex is a library for reading Windows registry hive files. A specially crafted hive file with malformed large data block lists makes it read memory out of bounds, which can crash the program that parses the file.

_Summary, check and fix written by a model from the sources; labelled as such._

## Timeline

- 2026-11-02T22:35:43+00:00 nvd https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-120740

## From the sources

A flaw was found in hivex. By supplying a specially crafted Windows registry hive file, an attacker can trigger an out-of-bounds memory read when hivex parses registry values containing malformed large data block lists. This issue can cause the application processing the registry file to crash, resulting in a Denial of Service (DoS).

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