CyberSecBulletin
CVE-2026-16221NVD status: Analyzed

fast-uri: Interpretation Conflict

Published Updated By the CyberSecBulletin desk

CVE-2026-16221 is a high-severity interpretation conflict vulnerability in fast-uri, 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. The record lists versions 2.4.3, 3.1.4, 4.1.1 as the first without the flaw, so updating fast-uri to one of those releases or later removes the exposure. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.44% 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. Update fast-uri to 2.4.3 or 3.1.4 or 4.1.1, whichever matches your release line, or a later version.
  2. Read the advisory on cna.openjsf.org 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
Fast-urifast-uri2.3.1 up to, but not including, 2.4.3; 3.0.0 up to, but not including, 3.1.4; 4.0.0 up to, but not including, 4.1.12.4.3, 3.1.4, 4.1.1

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
HighData or code can be modified at will.
Availability
NoneAvailability is not affected.

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

Official description

Impact: fast-uri versions from 2.3.1 through 4.1.0 (including the 3.x line up to 3.1.3 and the 2.x line up to 2.4.2) do not treat a literal backslash character (U+005C) as an authority delimiter. Node's native WHATWG URL parser, used by fetch, undici, and Node's http and https clients, normalizes the backslash to a forward slash for special schemes such as http, https, ws, wss, ftp, and file. As a result, the two parsers extract different hosts from the same input string. Applications that use fast-uri to enforce host-based policy such as allowlists, denylists, loopback or SSRF filtering, redirect validation, or outbound proxy routing before passing the same URL into Node's URL or fetch consumers can be steered to an unintended destination, including cloud metadata endpoints, loopback, or internal hosts. Patches: upgrade to fast-uri 4.1.1, 3.1.4, or 2.4.3. Workarounds: none.

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

The underlying weakness: Interpretation Conflict

Product A handles inputs or steps differently than Product B, which causes A to perform incorrect actions based on its perception of B's state.

More Interpretation Conflict vulnerabilities (CWE-436)

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 fast-uri

All fast-uri vulnerabilities

Recent Interpretation Conflict vulnerabilities

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