# CVE-2022-22170: Junos OS: Specific packets over VXLAN cause FPC memory leak and ultimately reset

> Unauthenticated attackers can cause a Denial of Service by sending specific VXLAN packets that trigger a memory leak and reset the Packet Forwarding Engine.

- **Severity:** High 7.5 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 19 Jan 2022
- **Updated:** 17 Sep 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-5mgw-p3mp-fxpw

## What is CVE-2022-22170?

CVE-2022-22170 is a high-severity denial of service vulnerability in Juniper Junos, published on 19 Jan 2022. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

A Missing Release of Resource after Effective Lifetime vulnerability in the Packet Forwarding Engine (PFE) of Juniper Networks Junos OS allows an unauthenticated networked attacker to cause a Denial of Service (DoS) by sending specific packets over VXLAN which cause heap memory to leak and on exhaustion the PFE to reset. The heap memory utilization can be monitored with the command: user@host> show chassis fpc This issue affects: Juniper Networks Junos OS 19.4 versions prior to 19.4R2-S6, 19.4R3-S6; 20.1 versions prior to 20.1R3-S2; 20.2 versions prior to 20.2R3-S3; 20.3 versions prior to 20.3R3-S1; 20.4 versions prior to 20.4R3; 21.1 versions prior to 21.1R3; 21.2 versions prior to 21.2R2. This issue does not affect versions of Junos OS prior to 19.4R1.

Weakness: CWE-772 (Missing Release of Resource after Effective Lifetime)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2022-22170?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Juniper Junos.

## How do I fix CVE-2022-22170?

No fix has been published for CVE-2022-22170 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2022-22170 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2022-22170 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Juniper Junos

- [CVE-2023-36845](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-36845/): Juniper Junos OS EX Series and SRX Series PHP External Variable Modification (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2020-1631](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-1631/): Juniper Junos OS Path Traversal (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2025-21590](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-21590/): Juniper Junos OS Improper Isolation or Compartmentalization (medium 6.7, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2023-36851](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-36851/): Juniper Junos OS SRX Series Missing Authentication for Critical Function (medium 5.3, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2023-36844](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-36844/): Juniper Junos OS EX Series PHP External Variable Modification (medium 5.3, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2022-22170 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2022-22170 is a high-severity denial of service vulnerability in Juniper Junos, published on 19 Jan 2022. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2022-22170 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Juniper Junos. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-22170/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-22170/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2022-22170
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2022-22170
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2022-22170

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-22170/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.