Severity by source
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:H/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:H/SI:H/SA:H/E:U/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X
Attacker-controlled upstream responses give AV:N/PR:N/UI:N; heap-layout dependence forces AC:H; corruption stays within the resolver process so S:U; C/I:H reflect conditional RCE and A:H the reliable crash.
Primary rating from Vendor (NLnet Labs).
CVSS VectorVendor: NLnet Labs
Lifecycle Timeline
3DescriptionCVE.org
In NLnet Labs Unbound up to and including 1.26.0, a vulnerability was found in that can progressively corrupt heap memory and under certain systems and compilation options could lead to remote code execution. The vulnerability starts when CNAME synthesis during an upstream response needs to enforce(rewrite) a max TTL value in the packet buffer. Coupled with a compression pointer that points to the overwritten value and invalidates the domain name, it leads to an error path that does not properly move the buffer position and allows for the heap buffer overflow. Since this is heavily reliant on heap memory layout, results are memory corruption that eventually leads to a crash and under specific systems and compilation options remote code execution.
AnalysisAI
Heap-based memory corruption in NLnet Labs Unbound up to and including 1.26.0 lets a remote, unauthenticated attacker who controls or spoofs the upstream DNS response (PR:N/UI:N) gradually overwrite heap memory, with the reliable outcome being a crash and remote code execution possible only on certain systems and compilation options that lack hardening. The flaw is scored CVSS 8.4 (CVSS:4.0) and by the independent assessment as CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H, with the high attack complexity reflecting heavy dependence on heap layout and non-deterministic results. …
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Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata
Vulnerability AssessmentAI
| Exploitation | Exploitation requires the attacker to control or inject the upstream DNS response that Unbound processes - i.e., act as the authoritative server for a domain the resolver is induced to query, or hold an on-path position to spoof responses. … Additional conditions and limiting factors are described in the full assessment. |
| Risk Assessment | Signals are mixed and point to a genuine but not-yet-urgent priority. … Full risk analysis with EPSS, KEV, and SSVC signal comparison available after sign-in. |
| Exploit Scenario | Full exploit scenario with step-by-step reproduction available after sign-in. |
| Remediation | No vendor-released fix version is identified in the available data, so treat the first action as consulting the NLnet Labs advisory at https://www.nlnetlabs.nl/downloads/unbound/CVE-2026-82717.txt and upgrading to the first release past 1.26.0 as soon as it is confirmed there - do not rely on an unverified version number. … Detailed patch versions, workarounds, and compensating controls in full report. |
Recommended ActionAI
Within 24 hours, inventory all NLnet Labs Unbound deployments, confirm any instance running version 1.26.0 or earlier, and prioritize internet-facing recursive resolvers; restrict DNS recursion to trusted clients using access-control lists and firewall rules, and capture crash or abnormal restart logs from affected instances. …
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Unbound 1.6.4 through 1.9.4 contain a vulnerability in the ipsec module that can cause shell code execution after receiv
Use-after-free in the DNSSEC validator of NLnet Labs Unbound resolver versions 1.19.1 through 1.25.0 allows remote attac
A crafted DNSKEY whose owner name is a compression pointer into its own RDATA overflows the digest buffer in the DNSSEC
Remote denial of service in NLnet Labs Unbound recursive DNS resolver (versions up to and including 1.25.0) allows an at
Heap overflow denial-of-service in NLnet Labs Unbound recursive DNS resolver versions 1.14.0 through 1.25.0 allows remot
Remote denial of service in NLnet Labs Unbound 1.22.0 through 1.25.1 lets an unauthenticated client exhaust configured m
Remote denial-of-service in NLnet Labs Unbound 1.23.0 through 1.25.1 lets an attacker who controls a delegated DNS zone
Remote denial-of-service in NLnet Labs Unbound 1.9.0 through 1.25.1 allows an unauthenticated attacker to crash the recu
DNS cache poisoning in NLnet Labs Unbound (1.7.0 through 1.25.1) lets an actor who controls a single delegated zone unde
Heap buffer overflow in NLnet Labs Unbound 1.26.0 and earlier can be triggered when a resolver processing a large TCP-fr
A vulnerability named 'Non-Responsive Delegation Attack' (NRDelegation Attack) has been discovered in various DNS resolv
An incomplete fix for CVE-2020-12662 was shipped for Unbound in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7, as part of erratum RHSA-2020
Same weakness CWE-122 – Heap-based Buffer Overflow
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External POC / Exploit Code
Leaving vuln.today
EUVD-2026-80292
GHSA-r5xg-xh8m-9q2w