# CVE-2022-3171: Memory handling vulnerability in ProtocolBuffers Java core and lite > Attackers can cause denial of service via long garbage collection pauses by sending crafted binary data to applications using the Protocol Buffers Java library. - **Severity:** Medium 4.3 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L`) - **Exploited in the wild:** Not known - **Login needed:** Not needed - **Attackable:** Local or same network only - **Victim action needed:** Not needed - **Fix available:** Yes - **Published:** 12 Oct 2022 - **Updated:** 21 Apr 2025 - **Also known as:** CLEANSTART-2026-AV57631, CLEANSTART-2026-FD57145, DEBIAN-CVE-2022-3171, ECHO-7811-b7c6-2509, GHSA-h4h5-3hr4-j3g2, MINI-243g-q5cw-w5hf, MINI-4hx4-f29f-96cg, MINI-7243-5mx4-g3m9, MINI-79rm-h588-f854, MINI-98v7-cwqp-44m2, ROOT-APP-MAVEN-CVE-2022-3171, UBUNTU-CVE-2022-3171 ## What is CVE-2022-3171? CVE-2022-3171 is a medium-severity denial of service vulnerability in Fedoraproject Fedora, published on 12 Oct 2022. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim. ### Official description A parsing issue with binary data in protobuf-java core and lite versions prior to 3.21.7, 3.20.3, 3.19.6 and 3.16.3 can lead to a denial of service attack. Inputs containing multiple instances of non-repeated embedded messages with repeated or unknown fields causes objects to be converted back-n-forth between mutable and immutable forms, resulting in potentially long garbage collection pauses. We recommend updating to the versions mentioned above. Weakness: CWE-20 (Improper Input Validation) ## Which versions are affected by CVE-2022-3171? 40 open source packages ship an affected version, including com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java, com.google.protobuf:protobuf-javalite and com.google.protobuf:protobuf-kotlin. It affects 6 products. | Package | Ecosystem | Affected | Fixed in | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java` | Maven | All versions | 3.16.3 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java` | Maven | All versions | 3.16.3 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java` | Maven | From 3.17.0-rc-1 | 3.19.6 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java` | Maven | From 3.17.0-rc-1 | 3.19.6 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java` | Maven | From 3.20.0-rc-1 | 3.20.3 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java` | Maven | From 3.20.0-rc-1 | 3.20.3 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java` | Maven | From 3.21.0-rc-1 | 3.21.7 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java` | Maven | From 3.21.0-rc-1 | 3.21.7 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-javalite` | Maven | All versions | 3.16.3 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-javalite` | Maven | All versions | 3.16.3 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-javalite` | Maven | From 3.17.0-rc-1 | 3.19.6 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-javalite` | Maven | From 3.17.0-rc-1 | 3.19.6 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-javalite` | Maven | From 3.20.0-rc-1 | 3.20.3 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-javalite` | Maven | From 3.20.0-rc-1 | 3.20.3 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-javalite` | Maven | From 3.21.0-rc-1 | 3.21.7 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-javalite` | Maven | From 3.21.0-rc-1 | 3.21.7 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-kotlin` | Maven | All versions | 3.16.3 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-kotlin` | Maven | All versions | 3.16.3 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-kotlin` | Maven | From 3.17.0-rc-1 | 3.19.6 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-kotlin` | Maven | From 3.17.0-rc-1 | 3.19.6 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-kotlin` | Maven | From 3.20.0-rc-1 | 3.20.3 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-kotlin` | Maven | From 3.20.0-rc-1 | 3.20.3 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-kotlin` | Maven | From 3.21.0-rc-1 | 3.21.7 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-kotlin` | Maven | From 3.21.0-rc-1 | 3.21.7 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-kotlin-lite` | Maven | All versions | 3.16.3 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-kotlin-lite` | Maven | All versions | 3.16.3 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-kotlin-lite` | Maven | From 3.17.0-rc-1 | 3.19.6 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-kotlin-lite` | Maven | From 3.17.0-rc-1 | 3.19.6 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-kotlin-lite` | Maven | From 3.20.0-rc-1 | 3.20.3 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-kotlin-lite` | Maven | From 3.20.0-rc-1 | 3.20.3 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-kotlin-lite` | Maven | From 3.21.0-rc-1 | 3.21.7 | | `com.google.protobuf:protobuf-kotlin-lite` | Maven | From 3.21.0-rc-1 | 3.21.7 | | `google-protobuf` | RubyGems | All versions | 3.16.3 | | `google-protobuf` | RubyGems | All versions | 3.16.3 | | `google-protobuf` | RubyGems | From 3.17.0.rc.1 | 3.19.6 | | `google-protobuf` | RubyGems | From 3.17.0.rc.1 | 3.19.6 | | `google-protobuf` | RubyGems | From 3.20.0.rc.1 | 3.20.3 | | `google-protobuf` | RubyGems | From 3.20.0.rc.1 | 3.20.3 | | `google-protobuf` | RubyGems | From 3.21.0.rc.1 | 3.21.7 | | `google-protobuf` | RubyGems | From 3.21.0.rc.1 | 3.21.7 | Products: Fedoraproject Fedora, Google Google-Protobuf, Google Protobuf-Java, Google Protobuf-Javalite, Google Protobuf-Kotlin, Google Protobuf-Kotlin-Lite. ## How do I fix CVE-2022-3171? Upgrade com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java to a fixed version for your release line: 3.16.3, 3.19.6, 3.20.3 or 3.21.7. ## Is CVE-2022-3171 being exploited? There is no known exploitation of CVE-2022-3171 in the wild and no public exploit code. ## Other vulnerabilities in Fedoraproject Fedora - [CVE-2024-4577](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-4577/): PHP-CGI OS Command Injection (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild) - [CVE-2021-39226](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-39226/): Grafana Authentication Bypass (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild) - [CVE-2019-5544](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-5544/): VMware ESXi and Horizon DaaS OpenSLP Heap-Based Buffer Overflow (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild) - [CVE-2024-4947](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-4947/): Google Chromium V8 Type Confusion (critical 9.6, exploited in the wild) - [CVE-2024-4671](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-4671/): Google Chromium Visuals Use-After-Free (critical 9.6, exploited in the wild) ## Fix prompt for AI coding agents ```text Check this codebase for CVE-2022-3171 and fix it if it is affected. What it is: CVE-2022-3171 is a medium-severity denial of service vulnerability in Fedoraproject Fedora, published on 12 Oct 2022. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim. Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2022-3171 in the wild and no public exploit code. Affected packages and fixed versions: - com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java (Maven): affected all versions; fixed in 3.16.3 - com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java (Maven): affected all versions; fixed in 3.16.3 - com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java (Maven): affected from 3.17.0-rc-1; fixed in 3.19.6 - com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java (Maven): affected from 3.17.0-rc-1; fixed in 3.19.6 - com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java (Maven): affected from 3.20.0-rc-1; fixed in 3.20.3 - com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java (Maven): affected from 3.20.0-rc-1; fixed in 3.20.3 - com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java (Maven): affected from 3.21.0-rc-1; fixed in 3.21.7 - com.google.protobuf:protobuf-java (Maven): affected from 3.21.0-rc-1; fixed in 3.21.7 - com.google.protobuf:protobuf-javalite (Maven): affected all versions; fixed in 3.16.3 - com.google.protobuf:protobuf-javalite (Maven): affected all versions; fixed in 3.16.3 - com.google.protobuf:protobuf-javalite (Maven): affected from 3.17.0-rc-1; fixed in 3.19.6 - com.google.protobuf:protobuf-javalite (Maven): affected from 3.17.0-rc-1; fixed in 3.19.6 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-2022-3171/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-3171/index.md) ``` ## Sources - CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2022-3171 - NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2022-3171 - OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2022-3171 --- From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-3171/ Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.