CVE-2026-42245: net-imap has quadratic complexity when reading response literals
(updated )
Net::IMAP::ResponseReader has quadratic time complexity when reading large responses containing many string literals. A hostile server can send responses which are crafted to exhaust the client’s CPU for a denial of service attack.
References
- github.com/advisories/GHSA-q2mw-fvj9-vvcw
- github.com/ruby/net-imap/commit/6091f7d6b1f3514cafbfe39c76f2b5d73de3ca96
- github.com/ruby/net-imap/commit/88d95231fc8afef11c1f074453f7d75b68c9dfda
- github.com/ruby/net-imap/commit/de685f91a4a4cc75eb80da898c2bf8af08d34819
- github.com/ruby/net-imap/releases/tag/v0.4.24
- github.com/ruby/net-imap/releases/tag/v0.5.14
- github.com/ruby/net-imap/releases/tag/v0.6.4
- github.com/ruby/net-imap/security/advisories/GHSA-q2mw-fvj9-vvcw
- github.com/rubysec/ruby-advisory-db/blob/master/gems/net-imap/CVE-2026-42245.yml
- nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-42245
Code Behaviors & Features
Detect and mitigate CVE-2026-42245 with GitLab Dependency Scanning
Secure your software supply chain by verifying that all open source dependencies used in your projects contain no disclosed vulnerabilities. Dependency Scanning using SBOM also detects vulnerabilities from proprietary advisories that this site does not include. Learn more about Dependency Scanning using SBOM →