Processing slowdown via unbounded Root object recovery
Published Jan 10, 2026 · Updated Jan 10, 2026
Uncontrolled resource consumption in pypdf before 6.6.0 allows attackers to delay PDF processing through a malformed document. In non-strict mode, PdfReader.root_object trusts the trailer's /Size value and calls get_object for every candidate when /Root is absent, without a recovery limit. Attackers must cause an application to parse the crafted PDF; the resulting object scan consumes processing time but does not expose or alter data.
Summary
What happened
Uncontrolled resource consumption in pypdf before 6.6.0 allows attackers to delay PDF processing through a malformed document. In non-strict mode, PdfReader.root_object trusts the trailer's /Size value and calls get_object for every candidate when /Root is absent, without a recovery limit. Attackers must cause an application to parse the crafted PDF; the resulting object scan consumes processing time but does not expose or alter data.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-22690
- Published
- Jan 10, 2026
- Updated
- Jan 10, 2026
- Vendor
- py-pdf
- Product
- pypdf
- Classifications
- CWE-400, T1499.004
- Attack vector
- Unavailable
- Privileges
- Unavailable
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Jan 10, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Jan 10, 2026Record 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=< 6.6.0
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.
Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
- root_object_recovery_limit.pdf regression artifactproof of concept · demonstrated
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
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