# CVE-2026-79769: Nokogiri before 1.19.4 Invalid Memory Read via initialize_copy_with_args

> A programming error in Nokogiri can cause an out-of-bounds memory read and crash the process, requiring an upgrade to fix.

- **Severity:** High 8.7 (`CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 25 Aug 2026
- **Updated:** 26 Aug 2026
- **Also known as:** BELL-CVE-2026-79769, CLEANSTART-2026-PW98348, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-79769, GHSA-58vh-2xxg-v7j2, GHSA-g9g8-vgvw-g3vf, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-79769

## What is CVE-2026-79769?

CVE-2026-79769 is a high-severity memory corruption vulnerability in sparklemotion nokogiri, published on 25 Aug 2026. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Nokogiri versions before 1.19.4 contain a possible invalid (out-of-bounds) memory read in the protected internal Node#initialize_copy_with_args helper behind Node#dup and #clone, which unwrapped its source argument as an xmlNode without a type check. If application code calls this protected method with a non-Node argument (e.g., a Namespace), it reads an xmlNs out of bounds, crashing the process. This is only triggerable by a programming error and cannot be triggered by untrusted input or normal use of the public API. Only CRuby is affected. Version 1.19.4 adds a type check and raises TypeError.

Weakness: CWE-843 (Access of Resource Using Incompatible Type)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-79769?


## How do I fix CVE-2026-79769?

Upgrade to a fixed version.

## Is CVE-2026-79769 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-79769 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-79769 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-79769 is a high-severity memory corruption vulnerability in sparklemotion nokogiri, published on 25 Aug 2026. 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-2026-79769 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: sparklemotion nokogiri. 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-2026-79769/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-79769/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-79769
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-79769
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-79769

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-79769/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.