---
id: CVE-2026-73071
title: 'Vim is an open source, command line text editor'
summary: >-
  Vim is an open source, command line text editor. From 9.2.0511 until 9.2.0844,
  json_decode_item() in src/json.c can retain a stale pointer after
  json_decode_string() invokes channel_fill() to refill and free the current
  buffer, causing t…
severity: low
cvss: 3.3
cvssVector: 'CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L'
cwe:
  - CWE-416
published: '2026-08-11'
updated: '2026-09-09'
sourceUpdated: '2026-09-09T20:44:04.357'
source: NVD
sourceUrl: 'https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-73071'
references:
  - url: 'https://github.com/vim/vim/commit/f8126294a526aa80c5123eb3079e325daee9ec75'
    label: security-advisories@github.com
  - url: 'https://github.com/vim/vim/releases/tag/v9.2.0844'
    label: security-advisories@github.com
  - url: 'https://github.com/vim/vim/security/advisories/GHSA-69ch-22ch-r887'
    label: security-advisories@github.com
tags:
  - nvd
epss: 0.0011
epssPercentile: 0.01418
ingestedAt: '2026-09-09T21:22:45.527Z'
---

## Overview

Vim is an open source, command line text editor. From 9.2.0511 until 9.2.0844, json_decode_item() in src/json.c can retain a stale pointer after json_decode_string() invokes channel_fill() to refill and free the current buffer, causing the error path to read freed memory instead of reader->js_buf + reader->js_used when an invalid JSON string spans buffers. This issue is fixed in version 9.2.0844.

## Remediation

Refer to the linked advisories for vendor-supplied fixes and affected version ranges.