Unbounded Memory Growth in QUIC Server Incoming Channel Queue
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- Denial of service
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- None · None · High
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 11 fixed, 2 without a fix
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · CISA ADP. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat. Impact type from CWE-770.
Summary
Issue summary: When an OpenSSL QUIC server (Listener SSL object) processes valid QUIC Initial packets for unknown destination connection IDs, it can allocate and queue new incoming channels without enforcing any limit. Impact summary: A remote peer that can make many Initial packets reach the server listener faster than the application accepts connections, can cause the memory allocated to store the per-channel state to grow without any limits, potentially making the QUIC listener unavailable and causing Denial of Service. CWE: CWE-770: Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling Description: The function that handles inbound QUIC packets uses Connection-Id from the packet header to find an existing connection (QUIC channel). If no existing connection is found and the packet type is INITIAL, the function treats the packet as a new connection. It allocates a new channel object and inserts it into a queue where it waits to be accepted by the local application with SSL_accept(3ossl). The memory occupied by these initial channel objects may grow without bounds if the application is not able to call SSL_accept() frequently enough to serve these inbound connection requests. The issue is present since OpenSSL 3.5 when the QUIC server implementation was added. The fix introduces a limit for pending connections. The default limit is set to 256 pending connections (waiting to be accepted by the local application). Applications may change the default by calling SSL_set_value_uint(3ossl). FIPS impact: no The FIPS module is not affected as the QUIC implementation is outside of the OpenSSL FIPS module boundary.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OpenSSL | OpenSSL | 4.0.0 to before 4.0.2; 3.6.0 to before 3.6.4; 3.5.0 to before 3.5.8 | 4.0.2, 3.6.4, 3.5.8 | Patch available | CNA |
- OpenSSL VendorOpenSSL Affected 4.0.0 to before 4.0.2; 3.6.0 to before 3.6.4; 3.5.0 to before 3.5.8 Fixed in 4.0.2, 3.6.4, 3.5.8 Patch available CNA
CPE configurations NVD · 1
| CPE | Versions | Role | Vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| cpe:2.3:a:openssl:openssl:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 3.5.0 to before 3.5.8; 3.6.0 to before 3.6.4; 4.0.0 to before 4.0.2 | Vulnerable | OpenSSL |
- cpe:2.3:a:openssl:openssl:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 3.5.0 to before 3.5.8; 3.6.0 to before 3.6.4; 4.0.0 to before 4.0.2 Vulnerable ·OpenSSL
Remediation
- Fix · CNA OpenSSL (OpenSSL) Fixed in 4.0.2, 3.6.4, 3.5.8
Red Hat 15 advisories
- RHSA-2026:95346 Released 2026-11-06 · Red Hat rating CriticalOpenShift Container Platform 4.22.22 bug fix and security update
- Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4.22 rhcos-aarch64-4.22.9.8.202611032353-0, rhcos-ppc64le-4.22.9.8.202611032353-0, rhcos-s390x-4.22.9.8.202611032353-0 +1
- RHSA-2026:81201 Released 2026-10-12 · Red Hat rating ImportantCost Management Metrics Operator Update
- Cost Management 4 registry.redhat.io/costmanagement/costmanagement-metrics-rhel9-operator
- RHSA-2026:79357 Released 2026-10-08 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat Cost Management On-Premise container image update
- Red Hat Cost Management On-Premise 1 registry.redhat.io/costmanagement/costmanagement-ui-rhel10
Show 12 more Red Hat advisories
- RHSA-2026:79088 Released 2026-10-08 · Red Hat rating CriticalRed Hat Developer Hub 1.10.5 release.
- Red Hat Developer Hub 1.10 registry.redhat.io/rhdh/rhdh-hub-rhel9, registry.redhat.io/rhdh/rhdh-rhel9-operator
- RHSA-2026:72476 Released 2026-09-28 · Red Hat rating Importantcert-manager Operator for Red Hat OpenShift 1.20.1
- Cert Manager support for Red Hat OpenShift release 1.20 registry.redhat.io/cert-manager/cert-manager-operator-rhel9
- RHSA-2026:72475 Released 2026-09-28 · Red Hat rating Importantcert-manager Operator for Red Hat OpenShift 1.20.1
- Cert Manager support for Red Hat OpenShift release 1.20 registry.redhat.io/cert-manager/cert-manager-istio-csr-rhel9
- RHSA-2026:72470 Released 2026-09-28 · Red Hat rating Importantcert-manager Operator for Red Hat OpenShift 1.20.1
- Cert Manager support for Red Hat OpenShift release 1.20 registry.redhat.io/cert-manager/jetstack-cert-manager-acmesolver-rhel9, registry.redhat.io/cert-manager/jetstack-cert-manager-rhel9
- RHSA-2026:72399 Released 2026-09-28 · Red Hat rating Importantcert-manager Operator for Red Hat OpenShift 1.20.1
- Cert Manager support for Red Hat OpenShift release 1.20 registry.redhat.io/cert-manager/cert-manager-operator-rhel9
- RHSA-2026:72395 Released 2026-09-28 · Red Hat rating Importantcert-manager Operator for Red Hat OpenShift 1.20.1
- Cert Manager support for Red Hat OpenShift release 1.20 registry.redhat.io/cert-manager/cert-manager-istio-csr-rhel9
- RHSA-2026:72394 Released 2026-09-28 · Red Hat rating Importantcert-manager Operator for Red Hat OpenShift 1.20.1
- Cert Manager support for Red Hat OpenShift release 1.20 registry.redhat.io/cert-manager/jetstack-cert-manager-rhel9
- RHSA-2026:71603 Released 2026-09-24 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat Update Infrastructure 5.3 security update
- Red Hat Update Infrastructure 5 registry.redhat.io/rhui5/cds-kubernetes-rhel9, registry.redhat.io/rhui5/cds-rhel9, registry.redhat.io/rhui5/haproxy-rhel9 +2
- RHSA-2026:67956 Released 2026-09-16 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat Update Infrastructure 5.3 security update
- Red Hat Update Infrastructure 5 registry.redhat.io/rhui5/cds-kubernetes-rhel9, registry.redhat.io/rhui5/cds-rhel9, registry.redhat.io/rhui5/haproxy-rhel9 +2
- RHSA-2026:67165 Released 2026-09-14 · Red Hat rating Importantopenssl security, bug fix, and enhancement update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 9) openssl-devel-1:3.5.8-1.el9_8, openssl-perl-1:3.5.8-1.el9_8
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 9) openssl-1:3.5.8-1.el9_8, openssl-libs-1:3.5.8-1.el9_8
- RHSA-2026:67154 Released 2026-09-14 · Red Hat rating Importantopenssl security, bug fix, and enhancement update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 10) openssl-devel-1:3.5.8-1.el10_2, openssl-perl-1:3.5.8-1.el10_2
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 10) openssl-1:3.5.8-1.el10_2, openssl-libs-1:3.5.8-1.el10_2
- RHSA-2026:56097 Released 2026-08-18 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat Hardened Images RPMs Security Update
- Red Hat Hardened Images openssl-1:3.5.6-0.5.hum1@aarch64, openssl-1:3.5.6-0.5.hum1@src, openssl-1:3.5.6-0.5.hum1@x86_64 +12
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Important. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4 | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 5 | Affected | No fix yet |
| Cert Manager support for Red Hat OpenShift release 1.20 | Fixed | RHSA-2026:72394, RHSA-2026:72395, RHSA-2026:72399, RHSA-2026:72470, RHSA-2026:72475, RHSA-2026:72476 |
| Cost Management 4 | Fixed | RHSA-2026:81201 |
| Red Hat Cost Management On-Premise 1 | Fixed | RHSA-2026:79357 |
| Red Hat Developer Hub 1.10 | Fixed | RHSA-2026:79088 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 10) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:67154 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 9) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:67165 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 10) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:67154 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 9) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:67165 |
| Red Hat Hardened Images | Fixed | RHSA-2026:56097 |
| Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4.22 | Fixed | RHSA-2026:95346 |
| Red Hat Update Infrastructure 5 | Fixed | RHSA-2026:67956, RHSA-2026:71603 |
Not affected: 9 products
- Cert Manager support for Red Hat OpenShift release 1.20
- Cost Management 4
- Red Hat Developer Hub 1.10
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
- Red Hat JBoss Core Services
- Red Hat JBoss Web Server 6
- Red Hat JBoss Web Server 7
- Red Hat OpenShift AI (RHOAI)
- Red Hat Update Infrastructure 5
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-14456
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-9x89-v382-mjh7
- 2026-10-09 Fix available: RHSA-2026:79088 · Red Hat
- 2026-10-09 Fix available: RHSA-2026:79357 · Red Hat
- 2026-10-09 Fix available: Red Hat Cost Management On-Premise 1, Red Hat Developer Hub 1.10 · Red Hat
- 2026-10-13 Fix available: RHSA-2026:81201 · Red Hat
- 2026-10-13 Fix available: Cost Management 4 · Red Hat
- 2026-10-30 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
- 2026-11-06 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
- 2026-11-07 Fix available: RHSA-2026:95346 · Red Hat
- 2026-11-07 Fix available: Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4.22 · Red Hat
References
More Openssl vulnerabilities
- TI-2022-01915 The c_rehash script allows command injection CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2021-02645 SM2 Decryption Buffer Overflow CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2009-03392 The TLS protocol, and the SSL protocol 3.0 and possibly earlier, as used in Microsoft… CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2022-01176 The c_rehash script allows command injection CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2014-00154 The (1) TLS and (2) DTLS implementations in OpenSSL 1.0.1 before 1.0.1g do not properly… KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 7.5
- TI-2025-14107 Stack buffer overflow in CMS (Auth)EnvelopedData parsing CVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
Sources
- CVE-2026-14456 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-14456 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-9x89-v382-mjh7 · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2026-14456 · 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