CVE-2026-42402 Apache Neethi: Policy Normalization Unbounded Resource Allocation DoS
Attackers can cause denial of service via memory exhaustion in Apache Neethi by submitting crafted WS-Policy documents, requiring an upgrade to fix.
- Exploited in the wild
- Not known
- Login needed
- Not needed
- Attackable
- Over the internet
- Victim action needed
- Not needed
- Fix
- Available
What is CVE-2026-42402?
CVE-2026-42402 is a high-severity denial of service vulnerability in Apache Neethi, published on 1 May 2026. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Official description
Apache Neethi is vulnerable to a Denial of Service attack through algorithmic complexity in policy normalization. Specially crafted WS-Policy documents can trigger an exponential Cartesian cross-product expansion during the normalization process, causing unbounded memory allocation that exhausts the JVM heap. This occurs when the normalization process generates an excessive number of policy alternatives without bounds, leading to runtime memory exhaustion.
Users should upgrade to 3.2.2 which limits the maximum number of normalized policy alternatives.
Weakness: CWE-400
Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-42402?
2 open source packages ship an affected version, including org.apache.neethi:neethi. It affects 1 product.
| Package | Affected | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
org.apache.neethi:neethi Maven | All versions | 3.2.2 |
org.apache.neethi:neethi Maven | All versions | 3.2.2 |
Products include Apache Neethi.
How do I fix CVE-2026-42402?
Upgrade org.apache.neethi:neethi to 3.2.2 or later.
Upgrade, then put limits on request size, rate and nesting depth so one client cannot exhaust the service. More about Denial of service.
Is CVE-2026-42402 being exploited?
There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-42402 in the wild and no public exploit code.
Other vulnerabilities in Apache Neethi
- CVE-2026-91863 Apache Neethi: Uncontrolled recursion while parsing crafted WS-Policy documents allows denial of service
- CVE-2026-91864 Apache Neethi: Crafted WS-Policy documents bypass element/attribute limits causing memory exhaustion
- CVE-2026-91865 Apache Neethi: Crafted policy references cause exponential expansion during normalization leading to denial of service
- CVE-2026-91866 Apache Neethi: Crafted policies cause unbounded work during intersection leading to denial of service
- CVE-2026-66142 Apache Neethi: Uncontrolled recursion in policy processing
Sources
Also known as CLEANSTART-2026-CE10830, CLEANSTART-2026-PR63833, ECHO-9135-05a1-fbe3, GHSA-g36m-9g3m-2vmp, RHLW-2026-53fe7bbf25ea635a.