CyberSecBulletin
CVE-2026-42039NVD status: Modified

axios: Uncontrolled Recursion

Published Updated By the CyberSecBulletin desk

CVE-2026-42039 is a high-severity uncontrolled recursion vulnerability in axios, 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 axios versions: >= 1.0.0, < 1.15.1; < 0.31.1. The record does not name a fixed version, so check the vendor advisory. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.77% chance of exploitation within 30 days, higher than 56% of scored CVEs.

Next patch cycle

High severity with no evidence of exploitation so far.

What to do

  1. Check which version of axios 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
Axiosaxios>= 1.0.0, < 1.15.1; < 0.31.1Not stated
Red HatHawtIO HawtIO 4.4.0Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat Data Grid 8.6.1Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red Hatmulticluster engine for Kubernetes 2.1Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red Hatmulticluster engine for Kubernetes 2.11Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red Hatmulticluster engine for Kubernetes 2.6Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red Hatmulticluster engine for Kubernetes 2.8Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red Hatmulticluster engine for Kubernetes 2.9Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatNetwork Observability (NETOBSERV) 1.11.0Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatNetwork Observability (NETOBSERV) 1.12.2Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat Advanced Cluster Management for Kubernetes 2.14Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat Advanced Cluster Management for Kubernetes 2.15Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat Advanced Cluster Management for Kubernetes 2.16Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat Advanced Cluster Security 4.9Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat Advanced Cluster Security for Kubernetes 4.10Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat Developer Hub 1.8Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat Developer Hub 1.9Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat Discovery 2Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat Migration Toolkit 1.8Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat Migration Toolkit for Applications 8.1Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat OpenShift AI 2.25Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4.20Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4.21Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat OpenShift Dev Spaces 3.28Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat OpenShift Service Mesh 2.6Not specified in the recordNot stated

Version data comes from the organisation that assigned the CVE; 35 further products are omitted here. 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 NVD.

Scoring systemScoreSeverityScored by
CVSS 4.06.9MediumCNA (github.com)
CVSS 3.17.5HighNVD
CVSS 3.17.5HighCNA

Official description

Axios is a promise based HTTP client for the browser and Node.js. Prior to 1.15.1 and 0.31.1, toFormData recursively walks nested objects with no depth limit, so a deeply nested value passed as request data crashes the Node.js process with a RangeError. This vulnerability is fixed in 1.15.1 and 0.31.1.

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

The underlying weakness: Uncontrolled Recursion

The product does not properly control the amount of recursion that takes place, consuming excessive resources, such as allocated memory or the program stack.

How developers prevent this class of flaw

  • Ensure that an end condition will be reached under all logic conditions. The end condition may include checking against the depth of recursion and exiting with an error if the recursion goes too deep. The complexity of the end condition contributes to the effectiveness of this action.

More Uncontrolled Recursion vulnerabilities (CWE-674)

Timeline

  1. CVE record published.
  2. CISA published its SSVC assessment (exploitation: poc, automatable: yes, technical impact: partial).
  3. Record last changed materially (score, affected products, status or references).

References

Other vulnerabilities in axios

All axios vulnerabilities

Recent Uncontrolled Recursion vulnerabilities

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