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NGINX JavaScript EUVDEUVD-2026-101120

| CVE-2026-101025 MEDIUM
Memory Leak (CWE-401)
2026-10-14 f5 GHSA-4jj4-r79f-9v3x
6.9
CVSS 4.0 · Vendor: f5
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Attack ChainAIDerived

Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain

  1. Access
    Reach NGINX endpoint using njs xml.parse
  2. Delivery
    Send malformed XML payload
  3. Exploit
    Trigger unreleased libxml2 parser context
  4. Execution
    Repeat requests to leak memory
  5. Impact
    Exhaust worker, cause DoS

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
ASVS 5.0
V15 - Secure Coding and Architecture Resource cleanup, leak prevention
Exploitation Conditions

Requires an NGINX deployment where the optional njs (NGINX JavaScript) module is loaded AND the configured JavaScript logic calls xml.parse() on attacker-supplied XML in the data plane; absent that specific feature usage the leak is unreachable. The leak is triggered specifically by the xml.parse() failure path on malformed XML, so parsing of only well-formed, trusted XML is not affected. No authentication is required (CVSS PR:N) and exploitation is remote and unauthenticated, but impact accrues gradually across many requests against long-lived worker processes rather than from a single request, and the control plane is explicitly not exposed - this is a data-plane-only issue.

Impact

This is a moderate-severity denial-of-service issue, not a high-priority emergency. The vendor-supplied CVSS 4.0 vector (AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N) describes a remote, low-complexity, unauthenticated vector, but the only impact is availability (VA:L) with no confidentiality or integrity effect, consistent with CWE-401 memory leak semantics - a gradual resource-exhaustion condition rather than direct code execution or crash-on-first-request. No EPSS score, CISA KEV listing, SSVC decision data, or POC is present in the provided intelligence, so there is no public exploit identified at time of analysis and no evidence of active exploitation; the risk profile rests entirely on theoretical reachability. The score-limiting factor is reachability: the impact only materializes where the optional njs module is loaded AND application logic calls xml.parse() on attacker-controlled XML, which is a specific deployment pattern rather than a default NGINX install. Net: treat as a routine patch-when-convenient DoS fix for environments actually running njs XML parsing on untrusted input, not a drop-everything issue. One caveat to verify with F5: the advisory notes End-of-Technical-Support versions are not evaluated, so affected-version coverage for older releases is explicitly incomplete.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

An attacker repeatedly sends HTTP requests carrying malformed XML bodies to an NGINX endpoint whose njs configuration invokes xml.parse() on that input. Because the failed-parse path never releases the libxml2 parser context, each request leaks memory in the long-lived worker process, and sustained traffic drives unbounded memory growth until the worker is terminated or the host degrades. No authentication or user interaction is required (PR:N/UI:N), but no public proof-of-concept is identified in the provided data.

This Month Plan within 30 days. Why: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9).
Patch available 0.3% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAIv1 – Oct 14, 2026

Malformed XML parsed through NGINX JavaScript (njs) xml.parse() leaks libxml2 parser contexts, allowing unauthenticated remote requests to cause gradual, unbounded memory growth in long-lived NGINX worker processes and potentially leading to worker termination or denial of service. This is a moderate-severity data-plane issue and is exploitable only in deployments where the optional njs module is loaded and configured JavaScript logic calls xml.parse() on attacker-supplied XML; no public exploit identified at time of analysis. The independent assessment confirms remote unauthenticated reachability with low availability impact, and explicitly notes that the control plane is not exposed.

RemediationAI

The provided intelligence does not include an exact fixed njs version, so consult the F5 advisory at https://my.f5.com/manage/s/article/K000162614 for patched releases and upgrade to the vendor-recommended NGINX/njs version once published. Until a patch is applied, the highest-confidence mitigation is to stop passing attacker-controlled XML to njs xml.parse() or to disable the optional njs module entirely if JavaScript processing is not required; disabling the module removes the vulnerable code path but also disables all njs functionality. If xml.parse() must handle untrusted XML, pre-validate and reject malformed XML before it reaches xml.parse(), enforce strict request body/XML size limits, and rate-limit XML-processing endpoints, understanding that these controls reduce exposure rather than eliminate the leak. Because leaked parser contexts persist for the worker lifetime, periodically recycling NGINX worker processes can bound memory growth but will drop in-flight connections and should be treated only as a temporary stopgap. The issue is data-plane only; no control-plane exposure is present.

Affected VersionsENISA

NGINX JavaScript 0.7.10 <1.0.2

Affected Packages

euvd nginx_javascript fix: 1.0.2

Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)

Affects your stack

Affects 1 package in euvd

Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.

Technical ContextAI · show details

The flaw is in F5 NGINX JavaScript (njs), a module that adds JavaScript execution to NGINX worker processes in the data plane. njs exposes xml.parse() as a bridge to libxml2 for XML parsing; CVE-2026-101025 is a CWE-401 missing-release-of-memory issue in that bridge, where the failure path taken when xml.parse() encounters malformed XML does not register cleanup for the libxml2 parser context, so the context is never freed for the lifetime of the worker process. The CPE cpe:2.3:a:f5:nginx_javascript:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* indicates the affected product is F5 NGINX JavaScript across versions, but the leak is reachable only when the optional module is loaded and application logic calls xml.parse() on attacker-controlled XML; deployments that parse only well-formed trusted XML, or that do not use the module, are not affected. Because each failed parse leaks a context and the worker process is long-lived, repeated malformed XML requests accumulate memory until the worker may be terminated; this is a data-plane-only issue with no control-plane exposure.

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Severity by source

Vendor (f5) PRIMARY 6.9 MEDIUM
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:L/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
vuln.today AI 5.3 MEDIUM

Remote unauthenticated requests (AV:N/PR:N/UI:N) trigger a gradual memory leak with no confidentiality or integrity impact, yielding only partial availability loss (A:L) requiring sustained traffic.

3.1 AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L
4.0 AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:L/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N

Primary rating from Vendor (f5).

CVSS VectorVendor: f5

Attack Vector
Network
Attack Complexity
Low
Attack Requirements
None
Privileges Required
None
User Interaction
None
Vulnerable system: Confidentiality
None
Vulnerable system: Integrity
None
Vulnerable system: Availability
Low
Subsequent system: Confidentiality
None
Subsequent system: Integrity
None
Subsequent system: Availability
None

Lifecycle Timeline

2
Patch available
Oct 14, 2026 - 16:03 EUVD
CVSS changed
Oct 14, 2026 - 15:22 NVD
5.3 (MEDIUM) 6.9 (MEDIUM)

DescriptionCVE.org

Description

NGINX JavaScript (njs) has a vulnerability where the built-in njs engine leaks a libxml2 parser context when xml.parse() fails. The failure path did not register cleanup and the context was not released for the lifetime of the process. An unauthenticated attacker may send requests with malformed XML and can cause unbounded memory growth in long-lived NGINX worker processes.

Impact

This vulnerability may allow remote attackers to send requests that trigger repeated parsing of malformed XML and may lead to NGINX worker termination or denial of service. There is no control plane exposure; this is a data plane issue only.

Note: Software versions which have reached End of Technical Support (EoTS) are not evaluated.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.3%
Top 77% exploitable
Prevalence
Medium
njs is a common but optional NGINX module, not universally deployed
Data Quality
4 sources
Confidence: Medium

How this decision was reached

The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.

SignalValue
Severity MEDIUM
CISA KEV No
Public POC No
EPSS 0.3%
Patch available Yes
Active threat No
Deciding rule
MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9)
What every action level means
Emergency Immediate action required. Criteria: CRITICAL + in CISA KEV (actively exploited) without patch, OR CRITICAL + EPSS > 30% without patch, OR CRITICAL + active threat signals without patch.
Act Now Prioritize within 24-48h. Criteria: in KEV with patch available, OR CRITICAL + public POC, OR HIGH + EPSS > 10%, OR CRITICAL + active threat, OR any CRITICAL severity.
This Week Schedule remediation this week. Criteria: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9). Patch within normal change window.
This Month Plan within 30 days. Criteria: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9), lower exploitation probability. Include in regular patch cycle.
Monitor Track and reassess. Criteria: LOW severity (CVSS 0.1-3.9), minimal exploitation risk. No immediate action needed.

SSVC AssessmentENISA

SSVC Decision· derived
Scheduled
Exploitation
None
System Exposure· derived
Open
Automatable
Yes
Human Impact· derived
Medium
Technical Impact
Partial

Priority Score

34
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: 0
CVSS: +34
PoC: 0
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

Denial of Service attacks render applications or systems unavailable by overwhelming resources or triggering failure conditions.

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