CVE-2026-40572

OVERVIEW: CVE-2026-40572 affects NovumOS versions prior to 0.24, a custom 32-bit operating system written in Zig and x86 Assembly. The vulnerability exists in Syscall 15 (MemoryMapRange), which fails to validate that user-mode processes cannot map virtual address ranges containing critical kernel structures such as the IDT, GDT, TSS, and page tables. A local attacker can exploit this insufficient input validation to map and modify kernel interrupt handlers, achieving privilege escalation from user mode to kernel context. SEVERITY: This vulnerability carries a CRITICAL CVSS v3.1 score of 9.0, with an attack vector of local, low complexity, and no privilege or user interaction requirements. The impact is system-wide, with high confidentiality and integrity compromises possible through kernel-level access. The attack poses significant risk as it enables complete system compromise through elevation to kernel privilege levels. EXPLOITATION STATUS: There is no evidence of active exploitation in the wild; the vulnerability does not appear on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities list and remains inactive on the Hot List. While the EPSS score of 0.00012 indicates this is a low-probability target for exploitation attempts in the broader CVE landscape, the critical nature of the vulnerability and straightforward exploitation path suggest organizations running affected NovumOS versions should prioritize patching to version 0.24 immediately.