CVE-2021-46784Network attack vector

Proxy crash via oversized Gopher response

Published Jul 17, 2022 · Updated Aug 4, 2024

Denial of service in Squid 3.x through 3.5.28, 4.x through 4.17, and 5.x before 5.6 allows remote attackers to crash the proxy. The gopherToHTML routine accumulates generated HTML from attacker-controlled Gopher response fields in a size-limited String, where an oversized response triggers an assertion. Exploitation requires Squid to fetch an attacker-controlled Gopher URL permitted by its access rules, and the resulting crash interrupts the proxy without reported data disclosure or modification.

CVSS severity6.5
Medium
EPSS probability4.84%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
Coverage for this vulnerability

See if you're affected

Explore vulnerability checks for your environment with Hinoki.

Book a demo

Summary

What happened

Denial of service in Squid 3.x through 3.5.28, 4.x through 4.17, and 5.x before 5.6 allows remote attackers to crash the proxy. The gopherToHTML routine accumulates generated HTML from attacker-controlled Gopher response fields in a size-limited String, where an oversized response triggers an assertion. Exploitation requires Squid to fetch an attacker-controlled Gopher URL permitted by its access rules, and the resulting crash interrupts the proxy without reported data disclosure or modification.

The record

CVE
CVE-2021-46784
Published
Jul 17, 2022
Updated
Aug 4, 2024
Vendor
Unknown vendor
Product
Unknown product
Classifications
CWE-617, T1499.004
Attack vector
network
Privileges
Unavailable

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Jul 17, 2022CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Aug 4, 2024Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

Compare your product and version with the public record. A matching version still requires validation against your environment.

Is a vulnerable build present?

Affected buildAffected product and version details are unavailable.

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectornetwork
Required privilegesUnavailable in this record.

What is affected?

Affected products and versions are unavailable in this record.

Published CVSS scores

6.5NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

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.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectornetwork
PrivilegesUnavailable
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-617Reachable Assertion
T1499.004Application or System Exploitation

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

See the directory against your own environment.

Your stack

Check the software in your environment

Book a demo to see how Hinoki identifies affected software and validates exploitability in your environment.

Book a demo