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Quadratic denial of service in Mistune link text parsing

Priority MEDIUM 44CWE-407Published · Updated

Key facts

Attack vector
Network
Privileges required
None
User interaction
None
Attack complexity
Low
Attack requirements
None
Impact type
Denial of service
Confidentiality · integrity · availability
None · None · High
Fix status
Partial Red Hat: 1 without a fix

Attack profile from CVSS 4.0 · CNA. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat. Impact type from CWE-407.

Summary

Mistune before 3.3.0 contains an inefficient algorithm in parse_link_text that handles unbalanced square brackets poorly (CWE-407). A remote unauthenticated attacker can submit Markdown with long runs of unmatched brackets to mistune.html(), which makes worker processes scan repeatedly and stall for minutes.

Written with Claude Haiku 5.5 from the sources below · 2026-11-03

Description from the CNA

Mistune before 3.3.0 contains an inefficient algorithmic complexity vulnerability in parse_link_text that allows remote attackers to cause denial of service through unbalanced square brackets. Attackers can submit markdown containing long runs of unmatched brackets to mistune.html(), triggering repeated forward scans that stall worker processes for minutes.

Why it matters now

Exploitation None reported CISA SSVC · not in CISA KEV
EPSS 0.0041 35th percentileScored 2026-11-07
Fix Partial mistune (lepture): 3.3.0Red Hat: 1 without a fix

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

VendorProductAffected versionsFixed inStatusSource
lepturemistunebefore 3.3.03.3.0Patch availableCNA
  • mistune Vendorlepture Affected before 3.3.0 Fixed in 3.3.0 Patch available CNA

CPE names Threatist (inferred) · 1

Inferred from how NVD named this product before; not given by a source.

CPEVersionsRoleVendor
cpe:2.3:a:mistune_project:mistune:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*——lepture
  • cpe:2.3:a:mistune_project:mistune:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions — — ·lepture

Remediation

Upgrade lepture Mistune to version 3.3.0, which fixes the flaw. The sources list no fixed version for Red Hat OpenShift AI (RHOAI).

Written with Claude Haiku 5.5 from the sources below · 2026-11-03

  • Fix · CNA mistune (lepture) Fixed in 3.3.0

Fixed in the same release

Records fixed by the same vendor advisory or release, as the CNA lists them.

  • Release ·

    lepture mistune 3.3.0

    9 records Highest priority Priority HIGH 1 HIGH, 7 MEDIUM, 1 LOW

    Other records, highest priority first

    • TI-2026-79440 Path traversal in Mistune include directive lets attackers read filesPriority HIGH 79
    • TI-2026-79441 Path traversal in Mistune lets attackers read local filesPriority MEDIUM 64
    • TI-2026-79438 CSS injection in Mistune figure directive figwidth optionPriority MEDIUM 57

Vendor assessments

Red Hat

Red Hat rating: Important. Red Hat's page for this CVE →

ProductStatusPlan or fix
Red Hat OpenShift AI (RHOAI)AffectedNo fix yet
Not affected: 2 products
  • Red Hat OpenShift AI (RHOAI)
  • Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4

Timeline

  1. 2026-10-22 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-115347
  2. 2026-10-22 Alias added: GHSA-8xqv-hm62-6r4g
  3. 2026-10-23 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
  4. 2026-10-23 CVSS score added · Red Hat
  5. 2026-10-23 Priority changed: MEDIUM → LOW
  6. 2026-10-26 CISA SSVC decision points changed
  7. 2026-10-26 Priority changed: LOW → MEDIUM
  8. 2026-11-03 Affected versions changed · Red Hat

References

  • TI-2026-79440 Path traversal in Mistune include directive lets attackers read files CVSS 4.0CRITICAL 9.2
  • TI-2026-36755 Mistune: Potential DoS via quadratic-time parsing in parse_link_text CVSS 4.0HIGH 8.7
  • TI-2026-25521 Mistune ReDoS in LINK_TITLE_RE allows denial of service with crafted Markdown titles CVSS 4.0HIGH 8.7
  • TI-2026-53257 Mistune has Denial of Service — RecursionError via Excessive Emphasis Markers in Markdown CVSS 3.1HIGH 7.5
  • TI-2026-42736 Mistune block_parser: quadratic-time parsing on long lists of repeated reference-link definitions CVSS 3.1HIGH 7.5
  • TI-2026-42730 Regular expression denial of service in lepture mistune CVSS 3.1HIGH 7.5
See all 30 →

Sources