Unbounded integer parsing in the Version module enables CPU and memory exhaustion denial of service
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Local
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Attack requirements
- None
- Impact type
- Denial of service
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- None · None · Low
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 3 without a fix
Attack profile from CVSS 4.0 · CNA. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat. Impact type from CWE-400.
Summary
Uncontrolled Resource Consumption vulnerability in the Elixir standard library's Version module allows an attacker who controls a version string to cause a denial of service through CPU and memory exhaustion. The version parser converts numeric version components (major, minor, patch and numeric pre-release/build identifiers) to integers without bounding their length. A single large all-digit component therefore forces a super-linear, non-yielding base-10 to arbitrary-precision integer conversion (String.to_integer/1, i.e. :erlang.binary_to_integer/1) that pins a BEAM scheduler, and a larger component raises an uncaught SystemLimitError that crashes the calling process. A single moderately sized string (around one megabyte) is enough; no authentication is required. This is reachable from the public entry points Version.parse/1, Version.parse!/1, Version.match?/3, Version.compare/2, and Version.parse_requirement/1, which applications routinely call on untrusted input such as HTTP parameters, dependency-manifest fields, and package metadata. This vulnerability is associated with program files lib/version.ex and program routines 'Elixir.Version.Parser':parse_digits/2. This issue affects elixir: from 0.9.3 before 1.20.1.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- No
- 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| elixir-lang | elixir | 0.9.3 to before 1.20.1 | 1.20.1 | Patch available | CNA |
- elixir Vendorelixir-lang Affected 0.9.3 to before 1.20.1 Fixed in 1.20.1 Patch available CNA
CPE names CNA · 1
| CPE | Versions | Role | Vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| cpe:2.3:a:elixir-lang:elixir:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | — | — | — |
- cpe:2.3:a:elixir-lang:elixir:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions — — ·—
Remediation
- Fix · CNA elixir (elixir-lang) Fixed in 1.20.1
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat OpenStack Platform 16.2 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat OpenStack Platform 17.1 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat OpenStack Platform 18.0 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-49762
- 2026-10-06 Fix available: [email protected] · CNA
- 2026-10-06 2 new references · CNA
References
More elixir-lang vulnerabilities
- TI-2026-82969 Elixir JSON.decode lets huge integers exhaust CPU and memory CVSS 4.0MEDIUM 6.9
- TI-2026-82968 Unbounded port parsing in Elixir URI.parse/1 enables CPU exhaustion CVSS 4.0MEDIUM 6.3
- TI-2026-82970 Insecure temporary file in Mix deps.partition enables code execution CVSS 4.0MEDIUM 5.4
- TI-2026-53033 Unbounded recursion between Inspect.List charlist rendering and List.to_string/1 error path in Elixir CVSS 4.0MEDIUM 5.9
Sources
- CVE-2026-49762 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-49762 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- CVE-2026-49762 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
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