CPU exhaustion via repeated initial-window updates
Published Oct 8, 2026 · Updated Oct 8, 2026
CPU exhaustion in Go standard library net/http before 1.26.9 allows remote attackers to degrade HTTP/2 clients or servers via SETTINGS frames. Initial-window handling performs work proportional to the number of streams for each SETTINGS_INITIAL_WINDOW_SIZE change, amplifying many small frames after many streams are opened. Exploitation requires an HTTP/2 peer connection; the reported consequence is excessive CPU consumption, not a documented crash or reboot.
Summary
What happened
CPU exhaustion in Go standard library net/http before 1.26.9 allows remote attackers to degrade HTTP/2 clients or servers via SETTINGS frames. Initial-window handling performs work proportional to the number of streams for each SETTINGS_INITIAL_WINDOW_SIZE change, amplifying many small frames after many streams are opened. Exploitation requires an HTTP/2 peer connection; the reported consequence is excessive CPU consumption, not a documented crash or reboot.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-78669
- Published
- Oct 8, 2026
- Updated
- Oct 8, 2026
- Vendor
- Go standard library
- Product
- net/http
- Classifications
- CWE-405, T1499
- Attack vector
- network
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Oct 8, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Oct 8, 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=0 <1.26.9
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
No CVSS assessment is available in this record.
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.
Activity data is delayed. The latest report is Sep 28, 2026.
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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