Traffic amplification via unconditional QUIC token acceptance
Published Jun 12, 2026 · Updated Jun 12, 2026
Improper QUIC token validation in Netty 4.2.0.Final through 4.2.14.Final allows remote attackers to amplify traffic at spoofed hosts. NoQuicTokenHandler.validateToken returns offset zero for every nonempty token, so QuicheQuicServerCodec treats an unverified source address as validated. An unauthenticated attacker must send an Initial packet with a nonempty token and a spoofed victim address, causing uncapped handshake traffic to be reflected toward the victim.
Summary
What happened
Improper QUIC token validation in Netty 4.2.0.Final through 4.2.14.Final allows remote attackers to amplify traffic at spoofed hosts. NoQuicTokenHandler.validateToken returns offset zero for every nonempty token, so QuicheQuicServerCodec treats an unverified source address as validated. An unauthenticated attacker must send an Initial packet with a nonempty token and a spoofed victim address, causing uncapped handshake traffic to be reflected toward the victim.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-44894
- Published
- Jun 12, 2026
- Updated
- Jun 12, 2026
- Vendor
- The Netty Project
- Product
- Netty
- Classifications
- CWE-346, CWE-940, T1498.002
- Attack vector
- network
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Jun 12, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Jun 12, 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=>= 4.2.0.Final, < 4.2.15.Final
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
No public exploit references are available in this record.
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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