Service interruption via out-of-order unknown-field parsing
Published Jan 7, 2022 · Updated Apr 21, 2025
Resource-exhaustion DoS in vulnerable Google Protocol Buffers Java runtimes allows remote attackers to stall binary-data parsing. The parser interleaves UnknownFieldSet entries and processes them out of order, creating large numbers of short-lived objects and repeated garbage-collection pauses. Processing a crafted binary payload is required, and a payload of about 800 KB can occupy the affected parser for several minutes.
Summary
What happened
Resource-exhaustion DoS in vulnerable Google Protocol Buffers Java runtimes allows remote attackers to stall binary-data parsing. The parser interleaves UnknownFieldSet entries and processes them out of order, creating large numbers of short-lived objects and repeated garbage-collection pauses. Processing a crafted binary payload is required, and a payload of about 800 KB can occupy the affected parser for several minutes.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2021-22569
- Published
- Jan 7, 2022
- Updated
- Apr 21, 2025
- Vendor
- Product
- protobuf-java
- Classifications
- CWE-696, T1499
- Attack vector
- network
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Jan 7, 2022CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Apr 21, 2025Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
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Is a vulnerable build present?
Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.
- Affected versionversion=unspecified <3.16.1
- Affected versionversion=unspecified <3.18.2
- Affected versionversion=unspecified <3.19.2
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.
Attacks
What attackers are doing with it
Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.
Public exploit references
- OSS-Fuzz issue 39330 reproducer inputproof of concept · unverified
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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