Memory Allocation with Excessive Size Value in Elasticsearch Leading to Denial of Service
Summary
| CVE | CVE-2026-72678 |
|---|---|
| State | PUBLISHED |
| Assigner | elastic |
| Source Priority | CVE Program / NVD first with legacy fallback |
| Published | 2026-08-13 20:17:28 UTC |
| Updated | 2026-08-13 20:17:28 UTC |
| Description | Elasticsearch does not validate a size value taken from a user-supplied input before that value is used to reserve memory for an internal data structure. An authenticated user holding only read privileges can submit a single small crafted request to a product API endpoint that causes the node to attempt an excessively large allocation. The resulting memory exhaustion raises a fatal error that terminates the Elasticsearch node process, causing a denial of service for the affected node and degrading cluster health. The defect is not volumetric, so a single request is sufficient regardless of the heap size configured on the target node. |
Risk And Classification
Primary CVSS: v3.1 6.5 MEDIUM from [email protected]
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
Problem Types: CWE-789 | CWE-789 CWE-789 Memory Allocation with Excessive Size Value
| Version | Source | Type | Score | Severity | Vector |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.1 | [email protected] | Secondary | 6.5 | MEDIUM | CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H |
| 3.1 | CNA | CVSS | 6.5 | MEDIUM | CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H |
CVSS v3.1 Breakdown
Attack Vector
NetworkAttack Complexity
LowPrivileges Required
LowUser Interaction
NoneScope
UnchangedConfidentiality
NoneIntegrity
NoneAvailability
HighCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
Vendor Declared Affected Products
| Source | Vendor | Product | Version | Platforms |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CNA | Elastic | Elasticsearch | affected 8.19.0 8.19.19 semver | Not specified |
| CNA | Elastic | Elasticsearch | affected 9.4.0 9.4.4 semver | Not specified |
| CNA | Elastic | Elasticsearch | affected 9.5.0 semver | Not specified |
References
| Reference | Source | Link | Tags |
|---|---|---|---|
| discuss.elastic.co/t/elasticsearch-8-19-20-9-4-5-9-5-1-security-update-esa-2026-... | [email protected] | discuss.elastic.co | |
| CVE Program record | CVE.ORG | www.cve.org | canonical |
| NVD vulnerability detail | NVD | nvd.nist.gov | canonical, analysis |
No vendor comments have been submitted for this CVE.
There are currently no legacy QID mappings associated with this CVE.