Denial of Service of protobuf-java parsing procedure
Priority HIGH 72CWE-696Published · Updated
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- —
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- None · None · High
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 7 fixed, 16 without a fix
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · CNA. Fix status from CNA, GitHub and Red Hat.
Summary
An issue in protobuf-java allowed the interleaving of com.google.protobuf.UnknownFieldSet fields in such a way that would be processed out of order. A small malicious payload can occupy the parser for several minutes by creating large numbers of short-lived objects that cause frequent, repeated pauses. We recommend upgrading libraries beyond the vulnerable versions.
Why it matters now
Exploitation Proof of concept CISA SSVC · not in CISA KEV
EPSS 0.01795 78th percentileScored 2026-11-07
Public exploit Yes 1 exploit referenceTagged by NVD
Fix Partial protobuf-java (Google LLC): 3.16.1, 3.18.2, 3.19.2protobuf-kotlin (Google LLC): 3.18.2, 3.19.2+4 more productsRed Hat: 7 advisoriesRed Hat: 7 fixed, 16 without a fix
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- Poc
- Automatable
- Yes
- Technical impact
- Partial
The decision (Track, Attend, Act) also depends on your mission and well-being impact; see CISA's SSVC guide.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| protobuf-java | before 3.16.1; before 3.18.2; before 3.19.2 | 3.16.1, 3.18.2, 3.19.2 | Patch available | CNA | |
| protobuf-kotlin | before 3.18.2; before 3.19.2 | 3.18.2, 3.19.2 | Patch available | CNA | |
| google-protobuf [JRuby Gem] | before 3.19.2 | 3.19.2 | Patch available | CNA | |
| — | com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java (Maven) | before 3.16.1 | 3.16.1 | Patch available | GHSA-wrvw-hg22-4m67 |
| — | google-protobuf (RubyGems) | before 3.19.2 | 3.19.2 | Patch available | GHSA-wrvw-hg22-4m67 |
| — | com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java (Maven) | 3.18.0 to before 3.18.2 | 3.18.2 | Patch available | GHSA-wrvw-hg22-4m67 |
| — | com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java (Maven) | 3.19.0 to before 3.19.2 | 3.19.2 | Patch available | GHSA-wrvw-hg22-4m67 |
| — | com.google.protobuf:protobuf-kotlin (Maven) | 3.18.0 to before 3.18.2 | 3.18.2 | Patch available | GHSA-wrvw-hg22-4m67 |
| — | com.google.protobuf:protobuf-kotlin (Maven) | 3.19.0 to before 3.19.2 | 3.19.2 | Patch available | GHSA-wrvw-hg22-4m67 |
- protobuf-java VendorGoogle Affected before 3.16.1; before 3.18.2; before 3.19.2 Fixed in 3.16.1, 3.18.2, 3.19.2 Patch available CNA
- protobuf-kotlin VendorGoogle Affected before 3.18.2; before 3.19.2 Fixed in 3.18.2, 3.19.2 Patch available CNA
- google-protobuf [JRuby Gem] VendorGoogle Affected before 3.19.2 Fixed in 3.19.2 Patch available CNA
- com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java (Maven) Vendor— Affected before 3.16.1 Fixed in 3.16.1 Patch available GHSA-wrvw-hg22-4m67
- google-protobuf (RubyGems) Vendor— Affected before 3.19.2 Fixed in 3.19.2 Patch available GHSA-wrvw-hg22-4m67
- com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java (Maven) Vendor— Affected 3.18.0 to before 3.18.2 Fixed in 3.18.2 Patch available GHSA-wrvw-hg22-4m67
- com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java (Maven) Vendor— Affected 3.19.0 to before 3.19.2 Fixed in 3.19.2 Patch available GHSA-wrvw-hg22-4m67
- com.google.protobuf:protobuf-kotlin (Maven) Vendor— Affected 3.18.0 to before 3.18.2 Fixed in 3.18.2 Patch available GHSA-wrvw-hg22-4m67
- com.google.protobuf:protobuf-kotlin (Maven) Vendor— Affected 3.19.0 to before 3.19.2 Fixed in 3.19.2 Patch available GHSA-wrvw-hg22-4m67
CPE configurations NVD · 9
| CPE | Versions | Role | Vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| cpe:2.3:a:google:google-protobuf:*:*:*:*:*:ruby:*:* | before 3.19.2 | Vulnerable | |
| cpe:2.3:a:google:protobuf-java:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | before 3.16.1; 3.18.0 to before 3.18.2; 3.19.0 to before 3.19.2 | Vulnerable | |
| cpe:2.3:a:google:protobuf-kotlin:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | before 3.18.2; 3.19.0 to before 3.19.2 | Vulnerable | |
| cpe:2.3:a:oracle:communications_cloud_native_core_console:1.9.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 1.9.0 | Vulnerable | Oracle |
| cpe:2.3:a:oracle:communications_cloud_native_core_network_repository_function:1.15.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 1.15.0 | Vulnerable | Oracle |
| cpe:2.3:a:oracle:communications_cloud_native_core_network_repository_function:1.15.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 1.15.1 | Vulnerable | Oracle |
| cpe:2.3:a:oracle:communications_cloud_native_core_policy:1.15.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 1.15.0 | Vulnerable | Oracle |
| cpe:2.3:a:oracle:spatial_and_graph_mapviewer:19c:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 19c | Vulnerable | Oracle |
| cpe:2.3:a:oracle:spatial_and_graph_mapviewer:21c:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 21c | Vulnerable | Oracle |
- cpe:2.3:a:google:google-protobuf:*:*:*:*:*:ruby:*:* Versions before 3.19.2 Vulnerable ·Google
- cpe:2.3:a:google:protobuf-java:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions before 3.16.1; 3.18.0 to before 3.18.2; 3.19.0 to before 3.19.2 Vulnerable ·Google
- cpe:2.3:a:google:protobuf-kotlin:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions before 3.18.2; 3.19.0 to before 3.19.2 Vulnerable ·Google
- cpe:2.3:a:oracle:communications_cloud_native_core_console:1.9.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 1.9.0 Vulnerable ·Oracle
- cpe:2.3:a:oracle:communications_cloud_native_core_network_repository_function:1.15.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 1.15.0 Vulnerable ·Oracle
- cpe:2.3:a:oracle:communications_cloud_native_core_network_repository_function:1.15.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 1.15.1 Vulnerable ·Oracle
- cpe:2.3:a:oracle:communications_cloud_native_core_policy:1.15.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 1.15.0 Vulnerable ·Oracle
- cpe:2.3:a:oracle:spatial_and_graph_mapviewer:19c:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 19c Vulnerable ·Oracle
- cpe:2.3:a:oracle:spatial_and_graph_mapviewer:21c:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 21c Vulnerable ·Oracle
Remediation
- Fix · CNA protobuf-java (Google LLC) Fixed in 3.16.1, 3.18.2, 3.19.2
- Fix · CNA protobuf-kotlin (Google LLC) Fixed in 3.18.2, 3.19.2
- Fix · CNA google-protobuf [JRuby Gem] (Google LLC) Fixed in 3.19.2
- Fix · GHSA-wrvw-hg22-4m67 com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java (Maven) Fixed in 3.16.1 Advisory →
- Fix · GHSA-wrvw-hg22-4m67 google-protobuf (RubyGems) Fixed in 3.19.2 Advisory →
- Fix · GHSA-wrvw-hg22-4m67 com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java (Maven) Fixed in 3.18.2 Advisory →
- Fix · GHSA-wrvw-hg22-4m67 com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java (Maven) Fixed in 3.19.2 Advisory →
- Fix · GHSA-wrvw-hg22-4m67 com.google.protobuf:protobuf-kotlin (Maven) Fixed in 3.18.2 Advisory →
- Fix · GHSA-wrvw-hg22-4m67 com.google.protobuf:protobuf-kotlin (Maven) Fixed in 3.19.2 Advisory →
Red Hat 7 advisories
- RHSA-2022:8761 Released 2022-12-14 · Red Hat rating ModerateRed Hat support for Spring Boot 2.7.2 update
- Text-Only RHOAR
- RHSA-2022:7896 Released 2022-11-09 · Red Hat rating ModerateRed Hat Integration Debezium 1.9.7 security update
- RHINT Debezium 1.9.7
- RHSA-2022:6835 Released 2022-10-06 · Red Hat rating ImportantService Registry (container images) release and security update [2.3.0.GA]
- RHINT Service Registry 2.3.0 GA
Show 4 more Red Hat advisories
- RHSA-2022:5903 Released 2022-08-04 · Red Hat rating ModerateRed Hat Process Automation Manager 7.13.0 security update
- RHPAM 7.13.0 async
- RHSA-2022:5532 Released 2022-07-07 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat Fuse 7.11.0 release and security update
- Red Hat Fuse 7.11
- RHSA-2022:4623 Released 2022-05-18 · Red Hat rating ModerateRed Hat build of Quarkus 2.7.5 release and security update
- Red Hat build of Quarkus 2.7.5
- RHSA-2022:1013 Released 2022-03-22 · Red Hat rating ModerateRed Hat Integration Camel Extensions for Quarkus 2.2.1 security update
- RHINT Camel-Q 2.2.1
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Logging Subsystem for Red Hat OpenShift | Affected | No fix planned: Will not fix |
| Red Hat BPM Suite 6 | Affected | No fix planned: Out of support scope |
| Red Hat Integration Camel K 1 | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat Integration Camel Quarkus 1 | Affected | No fix planned: Will not fix |
| Red Hat Integration Service Registry | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat JBoss BRMS 5 | Affected | No fix planned: Out of support scope |
| Red Hat JBoss BRMS 6 | Affected | No fix planned: Out of support scope |
| Red Hat JBoss Data Grid 6 | Affected | No fix planned: Out of support scope |
| Red Hat JBoss Data Grid 7 | Affected | No fix planned: Out of support scope |
| Red Hat JBoss Data Virtualization 6 | Affected | No fix planned: Out of support scope |
| Red Hat JBoss Fuse 6 | Affected | No fix planned: Out of support scope |
| Red Hat JBoss Fuse Service Works 6 | Affected | No fix planned: Out of support scope |
| Red Hat JBoss SOA Platform 5 | Affected | No fix planned: Out of support scope |
| Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat Satellite 6 | Affected | No fix planned: Will not fix |
| Red Hat build of Debezium 1 | Affected | No fix yet |
| RHINT Camel-Q 2.2.1 | Fixed | RHSA-2022:1013 |
| RHINT Debezium 1.9.7 | Fixed | RHSA-2022:7896 |
| RHINT Service Registry 2.3.0 GA | Fixed | RHSA-2022:6835 |
| RHPAM 7.13.0 async | Fixed | RHSA-2022:5903 |
| Red Hat Fuse 7.11 | Fixed | RHSA-2022:5532 |
| Red Hat build of Quarkus 2.7.5 | Fixed | RHSA-2022:4623 |
| Text-Only RHOAR | Fixed | RHSA-2022:8761 |
Not affected: 2 products
- Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 7
- Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform Expansion Pack
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2021-22569
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-wrvw-hg22-4m67
References
Advisory 4
More Google-protobuf vulnerabilities
- TI-2022-02927 Memory handling vulnerability in ProtocolBuffers Java core and lite CVSS 3.1HIGH 7.5
Sources
- CVE-2021-22569 · CVE Program
- CVE-2021-22569 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-wrvw-hg22-4m67 · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2021-22569 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. Sources and licences