CyberSecBulletin
CVE-2025-54588NVD status: Analyzed

envoy: Use After Free

Published Updated By the CyberSecBulletin desk

CVE-2025-54588 is a high-severity use after free vulnerability in envoy from Envoyproxy, with a CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.5 out of 10. It can be exploited remotely over the network by an unauthenticated attacker, without any action from a user. Affected envoy versions: >= 1.34.0, < 1.34.5; >= 1.35.0, < 1.35.1. The record does not name a fixed version, so check the vendor advisory. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.5% chance of exploitation within 30 days, which is low compared with other CVEs.

Next patch cycle

High severity with no evidence of exploitation so far.

What to do

  1. Check which version of envoy you run against the affected versions below, and install the vendor's latest release.
  2. Read the advisory on github.com for workarounds and exact fixed builds.
  3. Until you can update, restrict network access to the affected service so it is not reachable from untrusted networks.

Affected products and versions

VendorProductAffected versionsFixed in
Envoyproxyenvoy>= 1.34.0, < 1.34.5; >= 1.35.0, < 1.35.1Not stated

Version data comes from the organisation that assigned the CVE. Confirm against the vendor advisory before deciding you are unaffected.

How the severity score breaks down

Attack vector
NetworkCan be exploited remotely over a network, including the internet.
Attack complexity
LowNo special conditions are needed; the attack works reliably.
Privileges required
NoneNo account or login is needed.
User interaction
NoneNo action by a victim is required.
Scope
UnchangedImpact stays within the vulnerable component.
Confidentiality
NoneNo data is disclosed.
Integrity
NoneNothing can be modified.
Availability
HighThe component can be taken down completely.

Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H. Scored by CNA (github.com).

Official description

Envoy is an open source L7 proxy and communication bus designed for large modern service oriented architectures. Versions 1.34.0 through 1.34.4 and 1.35.0 contain a use-after-free (UAF) vulnerability in the DNS cache, causing abnormal process termination. The vulnerability is in Envoy's Dynamic Forward Proxy implementation, occurring when a completion callback for a DNS resolution triggers new DNS resolutions or removes existing pending resolutions. This condition may occur when the following conditions are met: dynamic Forwarding Filter is enabled, the `envoy.reloadable_features.dfp_cluster_resolves_hosts` runtime flag is enabled, and the Host header is modified between the Dynamic Forwarding Filter and Router filters. This issue is resolved in versions 1.34.5 and 1.35.1. To work around this issue, set the envoy.reloadable_features.dfp_cluster_resolves_hosts runtime flag to false.

Source: the CVE record as published by its numbering authority, via NVD and CVE.org.

The underlying weakness: Use After Free

The product reuses or references memory after it has been freed. At some point afterward, the memory may be allocated again and saved in another pointer, while the original pointer references a location somewhere within the new allocation. Any operations using the original pointer are no longer valid because the memory belongs to the code that operates on the new pointer.

How developers prevent this class of flaw

  • Choose a language that provides automatic memory management.
  • When freeing pointers, be sure to set them to NULL once they are freed. However, the utilization of multiple or complex data structures may lower the usefulness of this strategy.

More Use After Free vulnerabilities (CWE-416)

Timeline

  1. CVE record published.
  2. CISA published its SSVC assessment (exploitation: none, automatable: yes, technical impact: partial).
  3. Record last changed materially (score, affected products, status or references).

References

Other vulnerabilities in envoy

All envoy vulnerabilities

Recent Use After Free vulnerabilities

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