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Mooncake EUVDEUVD-2026-91137

| CVE-2026-103765 HIGH
Missing Authentication for Critical Function (CWE-306)
2026-10-01 VulnCheck GHSA-3mpp-98wg-qvr5
8.8
CVSS 4.0 · Vendor: VulnCheck
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Attack ChainAIDerived

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

  1. Access
    Reach exposed /metadata HTTP endpoint
  2. Delivery
    Send unauthenticated write request
  3. Exploit
    Overwrite segment descriptor or rpc_meta entry
  4. Execution
    Redirect KV cache transfer to attacker listener
  5. Impact
    Capture inference data or exhaust memory

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A07:2025 - Authentication Failures
ASVS 5.0
V6 - Authentication Authentication required for critical functions
MITRE ATT&CK

1 technique across 1 tactic: Initial Access

The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up.

Exploitation Conditions

Exploitation requires network reachability to Mooncake's HTTP metadata server and its /metadata handler, which by design performs no authentication (CWE-306, PR:N) - any party that can connect can read, overwrite, or delete transfer-engine metadata keys. The practical limiting factor is network exposure, not an attacker prerequisite: the metadata server is meant to coordinate transfer engines inside an LLM serving cluster, so impact is realized only where that endpoint is reachable from an untrusted network rather than bound to a trusted internal backplane or localhost. To weaponize beyond pure DoS, the attacker must also be able to stand up a listener that the poisoned segment descriptor (tcp_data_port) or recreated rpc_meta entry will redirect KV cache transfers toward. Affected versions are Mooncake through 0.3.13.post1.

Impact

The input provides a CVSS 4.0 vector (CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:L/VA:H) scoring 8.8, indicating a network-reachable, low-complexity, unauthenticated flaw with high confidentiality and availability impact - consistent with CWE-306 (Missing Authentication for a Critical Function). All exploitation-barrier signals point the same direction: no authentication, no user interaction, and no special attack requirements, so the technical risk for any exposed instance is genuinely high rather than inflated. However, several key prioritization signals are ABSENT from the input: no EPSS probability was supplied, there is no CISA KEV listing, and no proof-of-concept is referenced, so real-world exploitation volume cannot be quantified from the data provided - this is a high-severity issue by construction but with no evidence of active or at-scale exploitation. No SSVC decision data was provided. The dominant mitigating factor is exposure scope rather than exploit difficulty: Mooncake's HTTP metadata server is intended for internal transfer-engine coordination within an LLM serving cluster, so risk hinges entirely on whether that endpoint is reachable from untrusted networks. Treat as high priority for any deployment where the metadata server is network-exposed, and as lower practical urgency where it is confined to a trusted backplane.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

An attacker who can reach the Mooncake HTTP metadata server sends unauthenticated requests to the /metadata handler to overwrite a segment descriptor (e.g. tcp_data_port) or re-create an rpc_meta entry, redirecting KV cache transfers to an attacker-controlled listener to capture or disrupt in-flight inference data. Alternatively the attacker floods the handler with writes to exhaust server memory and cause denial of service. No public exploit is identified at time of analysis, but the vulnerable code path is pinpointed in the referenced source (http_metadata_server.py).

This Week Schedule remediation this week. Why: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9).
No patch listed yet 0.5% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAIv1 – Oct 01, 2026

Unauthenticated access to Mooncake's HTTP metadata server (all versions through 0.3.13.post1) lets any network-reachable party read, overwrite, or delete transfer-engine metadata keys, allowing segment descriptors such as tcp_data_port to be poisoned or rpc_meta entries to be recreated so that KV cache transfers are redirected to attacker-controlled listeners, or server memory is exhausted. The flaw is a missing-authentication defect (CWE-306) on the /metadata handler and carries a CVSS 4.0 base score of 8.8 (assessed equivalently as CVSS 3.1 AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:L/A:H), meaning no credentials are required once the server is reachable on the network. Exploitation is therefore limited by network exposure rather than by attacker prerequisites, and no public exploit was identified at time of analysis and the issue is not listed in CISA KEV.

RemediationAI

No vendor-released patch was identified at time of analysis; the only upstream reference is tracking issue https://github.com/kvcache-ai/Mooncake/issues/4444, so confirm whether a fixed release exists beyond 0.3.13.post1 before assuming an upgrade path, and consult the VulnCheck advisory at https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/mooncake-through-0.3.13-post1-missing-authentication-in-http-metadata-server for updated status. Until a patched version is confirmed, the highest-value compensating control is to bind the HTTP metadata server to a loopback or dedicated internal interface and block its port at the host firewall so only co-located or trusted cluster members can reach /metadata, accepting the trade-off that legitimate transfer engines must be reconfigured to use the internal address. Network segmentation or a mutually authenticated reverse proxy in front of the metadata endpoint also removes the unauthenticated exposure, though it adds an extra hop and latency to metadata operations; monitoring or alerting on unexpected writes/deletes to metadata keys and on new outbound connections from transfer engines to unknown listeners helps detect poisoning and memory-exhaustion attempts, though it is detective rather than preventive. There is no safe way to 'patch' this by editing the Python handler in place unless the change is tracked and reapplied on every upgrade, so any such workaround should be treated as temporary and re-validated against the upstream fix.

Affected VersionsENISA

mooncake 0 ≤0.3.13.post1

Affected Packages

euvd mooncake no fix

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

Mooncake is a KV-cache-centric transfer/serving framework from the kvcache-ai project that coordinates transfer engines across an LLM serving cluster; a companion HTTP metadata server (mooncake-wheel/mooncake/http_metadata_server.py, handler logic at lines 61-106) stores segment descriptors and rpc_meta records that describe how peers connect. Because that handler exposes read, write, and delete operations over /metadata without any authentication or authorization check, the root cause maps to CWE-306 (Missing Authentication for a Critical Function): the function is security-relevant but simply has no identity gate, which is why the assessed vector is PR:N. The CPE cpe:2.3:a:kvcache-ai:mooncake:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* with the fixed reference 0.3.13.post1 indicates the entire release line up to and including 0.3.13.post1 is affected. The confidentiality impact is high because metadata keys reveal cluster topology and connection parameters, while the availability impact is high because an attacker can delete or corrupt keys and force repeated registration to exhaust memory; integrity is assessed as low-to-moderate because poisoning tcp_data_port or rpc_meta lets transfers be steered toward an attacker listener, but that step also requires the attacker to stand up and reach a listener from the transfer engine's perspective.

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Severity by source

Vendor (VulnCheck) PRIMARY 8.8 HIGH
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:L/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
vuln.today AI 9.4 CRITICAL

Unauthenticated network handler (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N); metadata read plus redirected KV transfers give C:H, metadata tampering I:L, and memory exhaustion/deletion A:H; scope unchanged.

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

Primary rating from Vendor (VulnCheck).

CVSS VectorVendor: VulnCheck

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

DescriptionCVE.org

Mooncake through 0.3.13.post1 contains a missing authentication vulnerability in the HTTP metadata server /metadata handler that allows unauthenticated attackers to read, overwrite, and delete transfer engine metadata keys. Attackers can poison segment descriptors such as tcp_data_port or re-create rpc_meta entries to redirect KV cache transfers to attacker-controlled listeners, or exhaust server memory.

Executive ViewAI

Why It Matters

Mooncake deployments running all versions through 0.3.13.post1 are exposed to unauthenticated network attackers who can manipulate internal data-transfer metadata, potentially redirecting KV cache traffic to attacker-controlled listeners or exhausting server memory. Because the flaw requires no credentials and no vendor-released patch is identified at time of analysis, any organization with a network-reachable Mooncake HTTP metadata server faces elevated risk to data confidentiality and AI workload availability. Security leadership should prioritize reducing network exposure and monitoring metadata integrity until a vendor fix is released.

Business Impact: High
Compensating Controls

No vendor-released patch identified at time of analysis; restrict network reachability to the Mooncake HTTP metadata server, require authentication via reverse proxy or mTLS, disable unused metadata endpoints, and monitor metadata integrity for unauthorized changes.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.5%
Top 59% exploitable
Prevalence
Low
niche open-source LLM serving infrastructure, specialized cluster deployments only
Social Media
2
Sightings
Data Quality
6 sources
Confidence: High
EUVD NVD CVE.org EPSS Vulnrichment CIRCL GitHub VulDB

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 0.5%
Patch available No
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
Poc
System Exposure· derived
Open
Automatable
Yes
Human Impact
High
Technical Impact
Total

Priority Score

44
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: 0
CVSS: +44
PoC: 0
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

Authentication bypass attacks exploit flaws in the verification mechanisms that control access to systems and applications.

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