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Apache CouchDB EUVDEUVD-2026-105156

| CVE-2026-90797 HIGH
Improper Handling of Highly Compressed Data (Data Amplification) (CWE-409)
2026-10-20 apache GHSA-r5m6-9384-3274
7.7
CVSS 4.0 · Vendor: apache
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Attack ChainAIDerived

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

  1. Access
    Reach CouchDB chttpd HTTP endpoint
  2. Exploit
    Send small gzip-compressed request body
  3. Execution
    Trigger unbounded decompression routine
  4. Impact
    Exhaust server memory, crash service

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
ASVS 5.0
V2 - Validation and Business Logic Compression ratio limits
Exploitation Conditions

No special conditions - remote unauthenticated exploitation against default configurations of Apache CouchDB 3.5.2 and earlier, where the chttpd HTTP interface accepts gzip-encoded request bodies and decompresses them without a size limit. The only practical prerequisite is network reachability of the CouchDB HTTP port (typically 5984/6984); the attacker needs no account, no privileges, and no victim interaction. Limiting factors are deployment-dependent rather than configuration-dependent: instances behind a reverse proxy or WAF that caps request/decompressed body size, or not exposed to untrusted networks, substantially reduce real-world exposure. Impact is limited to availability (service crash/hang via memory exhaustion); no data disclosure or modification results.

Impact

This is a genuine but bounded availability risk. The CVSS 4.0 vector (AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N) confirms remote, unauthenticated, low-complexity reachability with no user interaction, and the impact is strictly availability (VA:H, VC:N/VI:N) - a classic decompression-bomb denial of service, not code execution or data compromise. Supplemental metrics reinforce the picture: AU:Y (automatable) means the attack can be scripted and repeated cheaply, while E:U (Exploit Maturity: Unreported) indicates no known exploitation or public POC at the time the vendor scored it, consistent with the absence of any CISA KEV listing or POC reference in the provided data. No EPSS score was supplied, so statistical exploitation probability cannot be weighed. The net reading: this is a legitimate patch-worthy issue (easy to trigger, automatable, no auth) but it is a service-crash DoS rather than a system-compromise flaw, so it should be prioritized according to how exposed and business-critical each CouchDB instance is rather than treated as a critical breach vector. No signals conflict; the main gap is the missing EPSS value and the lack of independent POC/exploitation telemetry.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

A remote attacker with network access to a CouchDB node's HTTP (chttpd) interface sends a small gzip-compressed request body crafted to decompress to a very large size (a 'zip bomb'). Because decompression is unbounded, the server allocates memory until it is exhausted, crashing or hanging the database and denying service to legitimate clients. No authentication or user interaction is required, and the request is trivially repeatable; no public exploit code is identified at time of analysis.

This Week Schedule remediation this week. Why: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9).
Patch available 0.7% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAIv1 – Oct 20, 2026

Memory-exhaustion denial of service in Apache CouchDB 3.5.2 and earlier allows any unauthenticated remote client to crash or hang the database by submitting a gzip-encoded HTTP request body that chttpd decompresses without any upper size bound. Impact is limited to availability - no data disclosure or modification - and the only practical prerequisite is network reachability of the CouchDB HTTP interface (typically 5984/6984), with no account, privileges, or victim interaction required. No public exploit code or confirmed active exploitation was identified at time of analysis; Apache has released CouchDB 3.5.3 to fix the issue, and instances sitting behind a proxy or WAF that caps request body size are substantially less exposed.

RemediationAI

Vendor-released patch: upgrade to Apache CouchDB 3.5.3, which contains the fix for the unbounded gzip decompression in chttpd; treat this as the primary and complete remediation and verify the running version after upgrade (see https://lists.apache.org/thread/gsbotof0qn8x6zlpd7t568ny4053jo0n). Where upgrading must be staged, enforce the limit in front of CouchDB rather than relying on the server: set a hard client_max_body_size in nginx or LimitRequestBody in httpd on the reverse proxy that fronts 5984/6984, understanding that legitimate large attachment or _bulk_docs uploads above the chosen cap will begin failing; alternatively strip or reject requests carrying Content-Encoding: gzip at the proxy, at the cost of breaking clients that rely on compressed replication or attachment payloads for bandwidth savings. Restrict the CouchDB HTTP and clustered ports to trusted networks via firewall or security-group rules so only application tiers and administrators can reach them, and alert on node memory spikes, OOM kills, and restart loops as an early indicator of attempted exploitation. Note that these compensating controls only work when the proxy or firewall actually enforces them, since chttpd decompresses the body after any such layer has forwarded it.

Affected VersionsENISA

Apache CouchDB 0 <3.5.3

Affected Packages

euvd apache_couchdb fix: 3.5.3

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

chttpd is CouchDB's HTTP front end - an Erlang service layered over MochiWeb that terminates the REST API, replication endpoint, attachment uploads, and _bulk_docs traffic. It honors Content-Encoding: gzip on inbound request bodies and hands them to a decompression routine that performs no cap on the expanded output, making this a classic decompression-bomb pattern: a few kilobytes of compressed input can expand into gigabytes allocated on the BEAM VM heap, driving the node into memory exhaustion, OOM termination, or an unresponsive/restart loop. The CVE record carries no CWE assignment, but the root-cause class maps to allocation of resources without limits or throttling (CWE-770) combined with improper handling of highly compressed data (CWE-409). Because the affected path sits in the default HTTP request pipeline, exploitation requires no authentication (PR:N), no user interaction (UI:N), and only network-level access (AV:N); the CVSS 4.0 vector scores 7.7 with high availability impact both to the vulnerable component (VA:H) and downstream (SA:H) while confidentiality and integrity are unaffected. In a clustered CouchDB deployment, exhausting one node's memory can cascade into shard unavailability and reduced cluster capacity even though stored data remains intact.

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Severity by source

Vendor (apache) PRIMARY 7.7 HIGH
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:H/E:U/S:N/AU:Y/R:A/V:D/RE:M/U:Red
vuln.today AI 7.5 HIGH

Remote, unauthenticated, low-complexity request triggers memory exhaustion (PR:N/AV:N/AC:L), so the sole impact is availability (A:H) with no confidentiality or integrity effect and unchanged scope.

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

Primary rating from Vendor (apache).

CVSS VectorVendor: apache

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
High
Subsequent system: Confidentiality
None
Subsequent system: Integrity
None
Subsequent system: Availability
High

Lifecycle Timeline

2
Patch available
Oct 20, 2026 - 17:18 EUVD
CVE Published
Oct 20, 2026 - 15:39 cve.org
HIGH 7.7

DescriptionCVE.org

An unlimited gzip decompression routine in chttpd in Apache CouchDB 3.5.2 and below on all platforms allows any remote client to cause a denial of service via memory exhaustion. Users are recommended to upgrade to version 3.5.3, which fixes this issue.

Executive ViewAI

Why It Matters

A flaw in Apache CouchDB (versions 3.5.2 and earlier) allows anyone who can reach the database's HTTP interface to force it to exhaust memory and crash or hang, taking the service offline. Because no credentials or user interaction are needed, any internet- or network-reachable CouchDB endpoint represents an availability risk to the applications and business processes that depend on it. There is no risk of data theft or alteration, so leadership exposure is operational continuity rather than a data-breach or regulatory event.

Business Impact: High
Compensating Controls

Apply vendor patch.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.7%
Top 49% exploitable
Prevalence
Medium
popular open-source NoSQL database, common but 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 HIGH
CISA KEV No
Public POC No
EPSS 0.7%
Patch available Yes
Active threat No
Deciding rule
HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9)
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
Scheduled
Exploitation
None
System Exposure· derived
Open
Automatable
Yes
Human Impact
High
Technical Impact
Partial

Priority Score

39
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: +1
CVSS: +38
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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