jq: Algorithmic complexity DoS via hardcoded MurmurHash3 seed
Summary
| CVE | CVE-2026-40164 |
|---|---|
| State | PUBLISHED |
| Assigner | GitHub_M |
| Source Priority | CVE Program / NVD first with legacy fallback |
| Published | 2026-04-14 00:16:07 UTC |
| Updated | 2026-07-10 12:16:46 UTC |
| Description | jq is a command-line JSON processor. Before commit 0c7d133c3c7e37c00b6d46b658a02244fdd3c784, jq used MurmurHash3 with a hardcoded, publicly visible seed (0x432A9843) for all JSON object hash table operations, which allowed an attacker to precompute key collisions offline. By supplying a crafted JSON object (~100 KB) where all keys hashed to the same bucket, hash table lookups degraded from O(1) to O(n), turning any jq expression into an O(n²) operation and causing significant CPU exhaustion. This affected common jq use cases such as CI/CD pipelines, web services, and data processing scripts, and was far more practical to exploit than existing heap overflow issues since it required only a small payload. This issue has been patched in commit 0c7d133c3c7e37c00b6d46b658a02244fdd3c784. |
Risk And Classification
Primary CVSS: v3.1 7.5 HIGH from ADP
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
EPSS: 0.003660000 probability, percentile 0.286770000 (date 2026-07-13)
Problem Types: CWE-328 | CWE-407 | CWE-341 | CWE-328 CWE-328: Use of Weak Hash | CWE-407 CWE-407: Inefficient Algorithmic Complexity | CWE-341 Predictable from Observable State
| Version | Source | Type | Score | Severity | Vector |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.1 | ADP | CVSS | 7.5 | HIGH | CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H |
| 3.1 | [email protected] | Secondary | 7.5 | HIGH | CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H |
| 3.1 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | Secondary | 7.5 | HIGH | CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H |
| 3.1 | CNA | DECLARED | 7.5 | HIGH | CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H |
CVSS v3.1 Breakdown
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
Vendor Declared Affected Products
References
| Reference | Source | Link | Tags |
|---|---|---|---|
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:19151 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:18043 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:18046 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:25096 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:16692 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:34098 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:25181 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| github.com/jqlang/jq/security/advisories/GHSA-wwj8-gxm6-jc29 | [email protected] | github.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:23233 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-40164 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:28887 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:30089 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:18044 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:30078 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:26542 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:16693 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:18045 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:18040 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:30087 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:30088 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:18048 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:19365 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:18042 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:18047 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| security.access.redhat.com/data/csaf/v2/vex/2026/cve-2026-40164.json | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | security.access.redhat.com | |
| github.com/jqlang/jq/commit/0c7d133c3c7e37c00b6d46b658a02244fdd3c784 | [email protected] | github.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:23245 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | bugzilla.redhat.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:8579 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:25044 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:16252 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:26528 | 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c | access.redhat.com | |
| CVE Program record | CVE.ORG | www.cve.org | canonical |
| NVD vulnerability detail | NVD | nvd.nist.gov | canonical, analysis |
Additional Advisory Data
| Source | Time | Event |
|---|---|---|
| ADP | 2026-04-14T00:01:04.003Z | Reported to Red Hat. |
| ADP | 2026-04-13T23:40:12.693Z | Made public. |
Solutions
ADP: RHSA-2026:26528: Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4.12
ADP: RHSA-2026:26542: Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4.13
ADP: RHSA-2026:28887: Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4.14
ADP: RHSA-2026:23233: Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4.15
ADP: RHSA-2026:25044: Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4.16
ADP: RHSA-2026:34098: Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4.17
ADP: RHSA-2026:25181: Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4.18
ADP: RHSA-2026:23245: Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4.19
ADP: RHSA-2026:16252: Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 8), Red Hat Enterprise Linux CRB (v. 8)
ADP: RHSA-2026:18048: Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream AUS (v.8.4), Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream EUS EXTENSION (v.8.4)
ADP: RHSA-2026:18047: Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream AUS (v.8.6), Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream E4S (v.8.6), Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream TUS (v.8.6)
ADP: RHSA-2026:18046: Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream E4S (v.8.8), Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream TUS (v.8.8)
ADP: RHSA-2026:18045: Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream E4S (v.9.0)
ADP: RHSA-2026:18044: Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream E4S (v.9.2)
ADP: RHSA-2026:18040: Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS EUS (v. 10.0), Red Hat Enterprise Linux CodeReady Linux Builder EUS (v. 10.0)
ADP: RHSA-2026:16692: Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 10), Red Hat Enterprise Linux CodeReady Linux Builder (v. 10)
ADP: RHSA-2026:19151: Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 10), Red Hat Enterprise Linux CodeReady Linux Builder (v. 10)
ADP: RHSA-2026:18043: Red Hat CodeReady Linux Builder EUS (v.9.4), Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS EUS (v.9.4)
ADP: RHSA-2026:18042: Red Hat CodeReady Linux Builder EUS (v.9.6), Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS EUS (v.9.6)
ADP: RHSA-2026:16693: Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 9), Red Hat Enterprise Linux CodeReady Linux Builder (v. 9)
ADP: RHSA-2026:19365: Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 9), Red Hat Enterprise Linux CodeReady Linux Builder (v. 9)
ADP: RHSA-2026:25096: Red Hat AI Inference Server 3.2
ADP: RHSA-2026:30078: Red Hat AI Inference Server 3.3
ADP: RHSA-2026:30089: Red Hat AI Inference Server 3.3
ADP: RHSA-2026:30088: Red Hat AI Inference Server 3.3
ADP: RHSA-2026:30087: Red Hat AI Inference Server 3.3
ADP: RHSA-2026:8579: Red Hat Hardened Images
Workarounds
ADP: Mitigation for this issue is either not available or the currently available options do not meet the Red Hat Product Security criteria comprising ease of use and deployment, applicability to widespread installation base or stability.