CyberSecBulletin
CVE-2026-48779NVD status: Modified

ws: Uncontrolled Resource Consumption

Published Updated By the CyberSecBulletin desk

CVE-2026-48779 is a high-severity uncontrolled resource consumption vulnerability in ws from Websockets, 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 ws versions: >= 1.1.0, < 5.2.5; >= 6.0.0, < 6.2.4; >= 7.0.0, < 7.5.11, 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 1.43% chance of exploitation within 30 days, higher than 73% of scored CVEs.

Next patch cycle

High severity with no evidence of exploitation so far.

What to do

  1. Check which version of ws 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
Websocketsws>= 1.1.0, < 5.2.5; >= 6.0.0, < 6.2.4; >= 7.0.0, < 7.5.11; >= 8.0.0, < 8.21.0Not stated
Red HatCryostat 4 on RHEL 9Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat AMQ Broker 7.13.6Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat AMQ Broker 7.14.1Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat Enterprise Linux 10Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatCluster Observability Operator 1.5.0Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat Developer Hub 1.10Not 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 OpenShift AI 2.25Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat OpenShift AI 3.4Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat Openshift Data Foundation 4.18Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat Openshift Data Foundation 4.19Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat Openshift Data Foundation 4.20Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat OpenShift Dev Spaces 3.29Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat OpenShift Service Mesh 2.6Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat OpenShift Service Mesh 3.0Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat OpenShift Service Mesh 3.1Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat OpenShift Service Mesh 3.2Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat OpenShift Service Mesh 3.3Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatRed Hat Trusted Artifact Signer 1.4Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatCryostat 4Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatGatekeeper 3Not specified in the recordNot stated
Red HatNode HealthCheck OperatorNot specified in the recordNot stated

Version data comes from the organisation that assigned the CVE; 24 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 CNA (github.com).

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

Official description

ws is an open source WebSocket client and server for Node.js. All versions from 1.1.0 up to (but not including) 5.2.5, from 6.0.0 up to 6.2.4, from 7.0.0 up to 7.5.11, and from 8.0.0 up to 8.21.0 are affected by a memory exhaustion DoS vulnerability. A peer can send a high volume of exceptionally small fragments and data chunks, with modest network traffic, to force the remote peer into allocating and holding structural wrappers that consume far more memory than the default documented message-size limit, leading to process termination due to OOM. This issue has been fixed in versions 5.2.5, 6.2.4, 7.5.11, and 8.21.0.

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

The underlying weakness: Uncontrolled Resource Consumption

The product does not properly control the allocation and maintenance of a limited resource.

How developers prevent this class of flaw

  • Ensure that protocols have specific limits of scale placed on them.
  • Ensure that all failures in resource allocation place the system into a safe posture.

More Uncontrolled Resource Consumption vulnerabilities (CWE-400)

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 ws

All ws vulnerabilities

Recent Uncontrolled Resource Consumption vulnerabilities

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