CVE-2026-50560: Netty codec http2 Netty Susceptible To HTTP/2 Reset Vulnerability

MODERATE
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-563q-j3cm-6jxm
CVSS 5.3
CWE-770
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2026-50560 is a MODERATE (CVSS 5.3) netty susceptible to http/2 reset vulnerability (CWE-770: Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling) affecting Netty codec http2 libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The issue involves netty susceptible to http/2 reset attack with different on-the-wire signature. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 4.2.15.Final, 4.1.135.Final.

CVE-2026-50560 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2026-50560
GHSA Identifier GHSA-563q-j3cm-6jxm
Severity MODERATE
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 5.3
CWE Classification CWE-770: Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling
Affected Product Netty codec http2
Package Ecosystem Maven
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 5.3

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L).

Attack Vector Network (AV:N)
Attack Complexity Low (AC:L)
Privileges Required None (PR:N)
User Interaction None (UI:N)
Scope Unchanged (S:U)
Confidentiality None (C:N)
Integrity None (I:N)
Availability Low (A:L)

How to Fix CVE-2026-50560

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Netty codec http2 dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

io.netty:netty-codec-http2 fixed: 4.2.15.Final
<dependency>
    <groupId>io.netty</groupId>
    <artifactId>netty-codec-http2</artifactId>
    <version>4.2.15.Final</version>
</dependency>
io.netty:netty-codec-http2 fixed: 4.1.135.Final
<dependency>
    <groupId>io.netty</groupId>
    <artifactId>netty-codec-http2</artifactId>
    <version>4.1.135.Final</version>
</dependency>
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release:

mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=io.netty

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2026-50560, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=io.netty

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Netty codec http2 in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 4.2.15.Final), your application is affected.

Note: The mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=io.netty command inspects the resolved dependency graph declared in your project's POM files; it does not perform automated security scanning or inspect runtime dynamic classpaths. Always verify runtime container classpaths and shaded JARs.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-770: Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling, where the product allocates a reusable resource or group of resources on behalf of an actor without imposing any intended restrictions on the size or number of resources that can be allocated. In Netty codec http2, software state validation or input boundaries are circumvented during processing. Review the official source advisory statement below for specific affected components, classes, and reproduction details.

Source Advisory Statement

### Summary Netty HTTP/2 max header size handling produces attack similar to HTTP/2 Rapid Reset. ### Details There is a setting in the http2 specification called `SETTINGS_MAX_HEADER_LIST_SIZE`. According to[ the RFC](https://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc9113.html#name-defined-settings): “This advisory setting informs a peer of the maximum field section size that the sender is prepared to accept, in units of octets.” When a client sends that setting to Netty, it appears that Netty will behave as follows: - Read the request - Proxy the request to the origin - Attempt to produce a response - Create an exception while writing the headers for the response Functionally, this should be similar to the http2 reset attack, but with a different on-the-wire signature. ## Remediation When speaking with clients, Netty should potentially treat this as “advisory” and ignore it. It would be best to ignore the SETTINGS_MAX_HEADER_LIST_SIZE setting from clients (or ignore it when sending to clients). According to the spec, a server does not need to honor this advisory setting, and it appears that other http/2 implementations ignore it when acting as a server. ### Impact This is a DDoS attack similar to the HTTP/2 Rapid Reset Attack. ## Credit Jonathan Looney (Engineering, Netflix) ## Contact Ashley Tolbert (Security, Netflix) - artolbert@netflix.com

CVE-2026-50560 Affected Netty codec http2 Versions

2 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
4.2.15.Final4.1.135.Final
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
io.netty:netty-codec-http2
Maven
≥ 4.2.0.Final
< 4.2.15.Final
4.2.15.Final
io.netty:netty-codec-http2
Maven
< 4.1.135.Final
4.1.135.Final

References

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-50560?
CVE-2026-50560 is a security vulnerability in Netty codec http2 involving Netty susceptible to HTTP/2 Reset Attack with different on-the-wire signature under CWE-770: Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling.
Which Netty codec http2 versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 4.2.15.Final, 4.1.135.Final across affected packages: io.netty:netty-codec-http2.
What version fixes CVE-2026-50560?
Upgrading to 4.2.15.Final, 4.1.135.Final (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is netty-codec-http2 affected?
Yes, io.netty:netty-codec-http2 is affected in releases prior to 4.2.15.Final, 4.1.135.Final. Upgrade your dependency to 4.2.15.Final, 4.1.135.Final or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2026-50560?
CVE-2026-50560 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 5.3 (MODERATE) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2026-50560?
CVE-2026-50560 is classified under CWE-770: Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling (The product allocates a reusable resource or group of resources on behalf of an actor without imposing any intended restrictions on the size or number of resources that can be allocated.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2026-50560?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=io.netty'. This command lists direct and transitive dependencies in your build configuration so you can verify if a vulnerable version is resolved.
Machine-readable OSV JSON OSV v1.5 Schema
Normalized schema output
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-563q-j3cm-6jxm",
  "modified" : "2026-06-15T20:46:56Z",
  "published" : "2026-06-15T20:46:56Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2026-50560" ],
  "summary" : "Netty susceptible to HTTP/2 Reset Attack with different on-the-wire signature",
  "details" : "### Summary\n\nNetty HTTP/2 max header size handling produces attack similar to HTTP/2 Rapid Reset.\n\n### Details\n\nThere is a setting in the http2 specification called `SETTINGS_MAX_HEADER_LIST_SIZE`. According to[ the RFC](https://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc9113.html#name-defined-settings): “This advisory setting informs a peer of the maximum field section size that the sender is prepared to accept, in units of octets.”\n\nWhen a client sends that setting to Netty, it appears that Netty will behave as follows:\n\n- Read the request\n- Proxy the request to the origin\n- Attempt to produce a response\n- Create an exception while writing the headers for the response\n\nFunctionally, this should be similar to the http2 reset attack, but with a different on-the-wire signature.\n\n## Remediation\n\nWhen speaking with clients, Netty should potentially treat this as “advisory” and ignore it.  It would be best to ignore the SETTINGS_MAX_HEADER_LIST_SIZE setting from clients (or ignore it when sending to clients). According to the spec, a server does not need to honor this advisory setting, and it appears that other http/2 implementations ignore it when acting as a server.\n\n### Impact\n\nThis is a DDoS attack similar to the HTTP/2 Rapid Reset Attack.\n\n## Credit\nJonathan Looney (Engineering, Netflix)\n\n## Contact\nAshley Tolbert (Security, Netflix) - artolbert@netflix.com",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L"
  }, {
    "type" : "CVSS_V4",
    "score" : "CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:L/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
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    },
    "ranges" : [ {
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    "database_specific" : {
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    }
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      } ]
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    "database_specific" : {
      "last_known_affected_version_range" : "<= 4.1.134.Final"
    }
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/netty/netty/security/advisories/GHSA-563q-j3cm-6jxm"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-50560"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/netty/netty"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/netty/netty/releases/tag/netty-4.1.135.Final"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/netty/netty/releases/tag/netty-4.2.15.Final"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc9113.html#name-defined-settings"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
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    "severity" : "MODERATE",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2026-06-15T20:46:56Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2026-06-12T16:16:32Z"
  }
}