CVE-2026-44004 vm2: Host Process OOM DoS via Buffer.alloc (Timeout Bypass)
Attackers can crash the host process by exhausting memory via Buffer.alloc in vm2, bypassing timeout protections.
- Exploited in the wild
- Not known
- Login needed
- Not needed
- Attackable
- Over the internet
- Victim action needed
- Not needed
- Fix
- Available
What is CVE-2026-44004?
CVE-2026-44004 is a high-severity denial of service vulnerability in patriksimek vm2, published on 13 May 2026. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Official description
vm2 is an open source vm/sandbox for Node.js. Prior to 3.11.0, sandboxed code can call Buffer.alloc() with an arbitrary size to allocate memory directly on the host heap. Because Buffer.alloc is a synchronous C++ native call, vm2's timeout option cannot interrupt it. A single request can exhaust host memory and crash the process with a FATAL ERROR: Reached heap limit. This vulnerability is fixed in 3.11.0.
Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-44004?
2 open source packages ship an affected version, including vm2. It affects 1 product.
| Package | Affected | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
vm2 npm | All versions | 3.11.0 |
vm2 npm | All versions | 3.11.0 |
Products include Vm2 Project Vm2.
How do I fix CVE-2026-44004?
Upgrade vm2 to 3.11.0 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-2026-44004 being exploited?
It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2026-44004 exists.
Other vulnerabilities in patriksimek vm2
Sources
Also known as GHSA-6785-pvv7-mvg7, ROOT-APP-NPM-CVE-2026-44004.