Process crash via recursive nested JSON traversal
Published Aug 25, 2025 · Updated Aug 25, 2025
Uncontrolled recursion in LlamaIndex JSONReader before 0.12.38 allows attackers to crash a Python process with deeply nested JSON. When levels_back is set, _depth_first_yield recursively walks nested objects without handling RecursionError, allowing input depth to exceed Python's recursion limit. The hosting application must pass an attacker-controlled JSON file to JSONReader; resource exhaustion or an uncaught exception can interrupt that Python process.
Summary
What happened
Uncontrolled recursion in LlamaIndex JSONReader before 0.12.38 allows attackers to crash a Python process with deeply nested JSON. When levels_back is set, _depth_first_yield recursively walks nested objects without handling RecursionError, allowing input depth to exceed Python's recursion limit. The hosting application must pass an attacker-controlled JSON file to JSONReader; resource exhaustion or an uncaught exception can interrupt that Python process.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2025-5302
- Published
- Aug 25, 2025
- Updated
- Aug 25, 2025
- Vendor
- LlamaIndex
- Product
- LlamaIndex
- Classifications
- CWE-674, T1499
- Attack vector
- network
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Aug 25, 2025CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Aug 25, 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 <0.12.38
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
- Upstream deeply nested JSON regression reproducerproof of concept · demonstrated
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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