surrealdb: Use After Free
CVE-2026-121417 is a high-severity use after free vulnerability in surrealdb, with a CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.8 out of 10. It can be exploited with local access to the system by an attacker with a low-privileged account, without any action from a user. The record lists version 3.3.0 as the first without the flaw, so updating surrealdb to that release or later removes the exposure. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.2% chance of exploitation within 30 days, which is low compared with other CVEs.
High severity with no evidence of exploitation so far.
What to do
- Update surrealdb to 3.3.0 or a later version.
- Read the advisory on github.com for workarounds and exact fixed builds.
Affected products and versions
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
- LocalThe attacker needs local access or must trick a user into running something.
- Attack complexity
- HighSuccess depends on conditions outside the attacker's control.
- Privileges required
- LowA basic user account is enough.
- User interaction
- NoneNo action by a victim is required.
- Scope
- ChangedThe attack can reach beyond the vulnerable component into other systems.
- Confidentiality
- HighAll data handled by the component can be read.
- Integrity
- HighData or code can be modified at will.
- Availability
- HighThe component can be taken down completely.
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H. Scored by CNA (vulncheck.com).
| Scoring system | Score | Severity | Scored by |
|---|---|---|---|
| CVSS 4.0 | 8.8 | High | CNA (vulncheck.com) |
| CVSS 3.1 | 7.8 | High | CNA (vulncheck.com) |
Official description
SurrealDB before 3.3.0 contains a use-after-free vulnerability in surrealdb-core KV backends that pass borrowed transaction state into affinitypool::spawn_local closures relying on future Drop for safety. Rust embedders that leak a dispatched future (e.g. via mem::forget) and drop the transaction cause pool workers to read and write freed memory, risking crashes or memory corruption.
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.
Timeline
- CVE record published.
- CISA published its SSVC assessment (exploitation: poc, automatable: no, technical impact: total).
References
Patches and release notes
Other references
Other vulnerabilities in surrealdb
- 8.1 High severity
- 7.1 High severity
- 8.1 High severity
- 7.1 High severity
- 8.1 High severity
- 8.1 High severity
Recent Use After Free vulnerabilities
- 7.7 High severity
- 9.6 Critical severity
- 9.6 Critical severity
- 9.6 Critical severity
- 9.6 Critical severity
- 8.8 High severity
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