CyberSecBulletin
CVE-2026-45304NVD status: Analyzed

symfony: Improper Restriction of Recursive Entity References in DTDs

Published Updated By the CyberSecBulletin desk

CVE-2026-45304 is a high-severity improper restriction of recursive entity references in dtds vulnerability in symfony, 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 symfony versions: < 5.4.52; >= 6.0.0-BETA1, < 6.4.40; >= 7.0.0-BETA1, < 7.4.12, and others listed below. The record does not name a fixed version, so check the vendor advisory. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.68% chance of exploitation within 30 days, higher than 53% of scored CVEs.

Next patch cycle

High severity with no evidence of exploitation so far.

What to do

  1. Check which version of symfony 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
Symfonysymfony< 5.4.52; >= 6.0.0-BETA1, < 6.4.40; >= 7.0.0-BETA1, < 7.4.12; >= 8.0.0-BETA1, < 8.0.12Not stated
Symfonyyaml< 5.4.52; >= 6.0.0-BETA1, < 6.4.40; >= 7.0.0-BETA1, < 7.4.12; >= 8.0.0-BETA1, < 8.0.12Not 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 NVD.

Scoring systemScoreSeverityScored by
CVSS 4.08.7HighCNA (github.com)
CVSS 3.17.5HighNVD

Official description

Symfony is a PHP framework for web and console applications and a set of reusable PHP components. Prior to 5.4.52, 6.4.40, 7.4.12, and 8.0.12, Symfony\Component\Yaml\Parser resolved YAML collection aliases recursively, allowing a small untrusted YAML input to expand into a multi-gigabyte structure and exhaust memory. This issue is fixed in versions 5.4.52, 6.4.40, 7.4.12, and 8.0.12.

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

The underlying weakness: Improper Restriction of Recursive Entity References in DTDs

The product uses XML documents and allows their structure to be defined with a Document Type Definition (DTD), but it does not properly control the number of recursive definitions of entities.

How developers prevent this class of flaw

  • If possible, prohibit the use of DTDs or use an XML parser that limits the expansion of recursive DTD entities.
  • Before parsing XML files with associated DTDs, scan for recursive entity declarations and do not continue parsing potentially explosive content.

More Improper Restriction of Recursive Entity References in DTDs vulnerabilities (CWE-776)

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 symfony

All symfony vulnerabilities

Recent Improper Restriction of Recursive Entity References in DTDs vulnerabilities

Spotted an error? Tell us.