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Unbounded memory growth in Eclipse Vert.x MQTT client

Priority LOW 35CWE-770Published · Updated

Key facts

Attack vector
Network
Privileges required
None
User interaction
None
Attack complexity
High
Attack requirements
None
Impact type
Denial of service
Confidentiality · integrity · availability
None · None · High
Fix status
No fix listed

Attack profile from CVSS 4.0 · CNA. Fix status from CNA. Impact type from CWE-770.

Summary

Eclipse Vert.x from 4.0.0 through 4.5.34, from 5.0.0 through 5.0.12, from 5.1.0 through 5.1.9 and 5.2.0 is affected. The MQTT client keeps every inbound QoS 2 PUBLISH message in an unbounded internal map until the broker sends PUBREL (CWE-770). A malicious or compromised broker can send QoS 2 PUBLISH messages with distinct packet identifiers and withhold PUBREL, causing memory growth until the application degrades or runs out of memory.

Written with Claude Haiku 5.5 from the sources below · 2026-10-28

Description from the CNA

In Eclipse Vert.x versions [4.0.0, 4.5.34] or [5.0.0,5.0.12] or [5.1.0,5.1.9] or [5.2.0, 5.2.0], the Eclipse Vert.x MQTT (vertx-mqtt) MqttClient stores every inbound QoS 2 PUBLISH message received from the broker in an internal map (qos2inbound) while awaiting the corresponding PUBREL packet to complete the QoS 2 handshake. This map has no size limit; the maxInflightQueue option is enforced only on the outbound publish path and does not constrain inbound message retention. A malicious or compromised MQTT broker can exploit this by sending QoS 2 PUBLISH messages with distinct packet identifiers and withholding the PUBREL responses. Each incomplete handshake causes the client to retain the full publish message (topic, payload, and metadata) indefinitely, leading to unbounded memory growth in the Vert.x process. This can degrade the MQTT-consuming application or cause out-of-memory termination. The impacted component is io.vertx:vertx-mqtt.

Why it matters now

Exploitation None reported CISA SSVC · not in CISA KEV
EPSS 0.00306 23rd percentileScored 2026-11-07
Fix No fix listed No fixed version in the sources yet

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

VendorProductAffected versionsFixed inStatusSource
Eclipse FoundationEclipse Vert.x4.0.0 – 4.5.34; 5.0.0 – 5.0.12; 5.1.0 – 5.1.9; 5.2.0—No fix listedCNA
  • Eclipse Vert.x VendorEclipse Foundation Affected 4.0.0 – 4.5.34; 5.0.0 – 5.0.12; 5.1.0 – 5.1.9; 5.2.0 Fixed in — No fix listed CNA

CPE configurations NVD · 2

CPEVersionsRoleVendor
cpe:2.3:a:eclipse:vert.x:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*4.5.0 to before 4.5.35; 5.0.0 to before 5.1.10VulnerableEclipse Foundation
cpe:2.3:a:eclipse:vert.x:5.2.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*5.2.0VulnerableEclipse Foundation
  • cpe:2.3:a:eclipse:vert.x:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 4.5.0 to before 4.5.35; 5.0.0 to before 5.1.10 Vulnerable ·Eclipse Foundation
  • cpe:2.3:a:eclipse:vert.x:5.2.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 5.2.0 Vulnerable ·Eclipse Foundation

Remediation

The sources list no fixed version for Eclipse Vert.x.

Written with Claude Haiku 5.5 from the sources below · 2026-10-28

Timeline

  1. 2026-10-16 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-102464
  2. 2026-10-21 Alias added: GHSA-g3vx-j9rx-jfm5
  3. 2026-10-21 CVSS score added · NVD

References

  • TI-2026-06017 Improper certificate validation in Eclipse Vert.x CVSS 4.0MEDIUM 6.9
  • TI-2025-10971 In Eclipse Vert.x versions [4.0.0, 4.5.21] and [5.0.0, 5.0.4], a StaticHandler… CVSS 4.0MEDIUM 6.3
  • TI-2019-13165 Path traversal in Eclipse Vert.x CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
  • TI-2018-09003 XML external entity injection in Eclipse Vert.x CVSS 3.0CRITICAL 9.8
  • TI-2018-09001 Path traversal in Eclipse Vert.x CVSS 3.0CRITICAL 9.8
  • TI-2025-10972 Cross-site scripting in Eclipse Foundation Vert.x CVSS 4.0LOW 2.3
See all 26 →

Sources