The wave5 media driver in the Linux kernel lacks validation for the dec_output_info structure, allowing the driver to write past the bounds of the output buffer when it contains malformed data. This overflow can corrupt kernel memory, potentially leading to privilege escalation or denial‑of‑service. The vulnerability is an instance of stack or heap buffer overflow (CWE‑787).

This flaw resides in the Linux kernel’s wave5 media driver (chips‑media). Any Linux kernel that includes this driver without the range‑check patch is vulnerable. Distribution‑specific version information is not supplied, so users should verify whether their current kernel build contains commit 144f24ec0fc1e51673611912a6d14ded0a61db43 (or later) that implements the fix.

The CVSS score of 5.5 indicates moderate severity, and the EPSS score of less than 1% shows low exploitation probability at the time of assessment. The vulnerability is not in the CISA KEV catalog. Exploitation would likely require local access to the wave5 hardware or the ability to load a malicious kernel module to supply malformed data to the driver. Because the issue is a pure buffer overflow in kernel space, a successful exploit could enable privilege escalation or crash the system. No public exploits are documented, but the nature of the bug warrants timely patching.