CVE-2026-53719: Envoy Gateway Nil-dereference When SecurityPolicy Targets TCPRoute Vulnerability

MODERATE
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-m2v6-2jmh-4c68
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CVSS 6.5
CWE-476
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2026-53719 is a MODERATE (CVSS 6.5) nil-dereference when securitypolicy targets tcproute vulnerability (CWE-476: NULL Pointer Dereference) affecting Envoy Gateway libraries in the Go ecosystem. The issue involves nil-dereference when securitypolicy targets tcproute without spec.authorization. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 1.8.1, 1.7.4.

CVE-2026-53719 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2026-53719
GHSA Identifier GHSA-m2v6-2jmh-4c68
Severity MODERATE
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 6.5
CWE Classification CWE-476: NULL Pointer Dereference
Affected Product Envoy Gateway
Package Ecosystem Go
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 6.5

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

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

How to Fix CVE-2026-53719

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

github.com/envoyproxy/gateway fixed: 1.8.1 
Upgrade github.com/envoyproxy/gateway to 1.8.1
github.com/envoyproxy/gateway fixed: 1.7.4 
Upgrade github.com/envoyproxy/gateway to 1.7.4
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

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

inspect dependencies for github.com/envoyproxy/gateway

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your application is affected by CVE-2026-53719, inspect your project dependencies for Envoy Gateway:

inspect dependencies for github.com/envoyproxy/gateway

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Envoy Gateway in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 1.8.1), your application is affected.

Note: Verify declared build manifests and deployed runtime container environments.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-476: NULL Pointer Dereference, where the product dereferences a pointer that it expects to be valid but is null. In Envoy Gateway, 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

Vulnerability report without repro case. Repro case may be added later after harness is complete. **Preconditions (4):** - Tenant has SecurityPolicy + TCPRoute RBAC (baseline) - Tenant namespace permitted to attach TCPRoute to a Gateway listener - spec.authorization omitted (the trigger) - No admission webhook blocks the shape **Description:** A namespace-scoped tenant can deterministically panic the gatewayapi runner on every reconcile with a single CRD; the recover() in message/watchutil.go:53 keeps the process alive but unwinds the entire handle() callback in runner/runner.go:192, so xDS/Infra IR publishing stalls controller-wide until an admin deletes the object. Data plane keeps serving last-good config.

CVE-2026-53719 Affected Envoy Gateway Versions

2 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
1.8.11.7.4
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
github.com/envoyproxy/gateway
golang/github.com/envoyproxy/gateway
Go
≥ 1.8.0-rc.0
< 1.8.1
1.8.1
github.com/envoyproxy/gateway
golang/github.com/envoyproxy/gateway
Go
< 1.7.4
1.7.4

References

GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/envoyproxy/gateway/security/advisories/GHSA-m2v6-2jmh-4c68
Envoy Gateway Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/envoyproxy/gateway

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-53719?
CVE-2026-53719 is a security vulnerability in Envoy Gateway involving Nil-dereference when SecurityPolicy targets TCPRoute without spec.authorization under CWE-476: NULL Pointer Dereference.
Which Envoy Gateway versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 1.8.1, 1.7.4 across affected packages: github.com/envoyproxy/gateway.
What version fixes CVE-2026-53719?
Upgrading to 1.8.1, 1.7.4 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is github.com/envoyproxy/gateway affected?
Yes, github.com/envoyproxy/gateway is affected in releases prior to 1.8.1, 1.7.4. Upgrade your dependency to 1.8.1, 1.7.4 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2026-53719?
CVE-2026-53719 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 6.5 (MODERATE) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2026-53719?
CVE-2026-53719 is classified under CWE-476: NULL Pointer Dereference (The product dereferences a pointer that it expects to be valid but is NULL.).
How can I check Go dependencies for CVE-2026-53719?
Run the dependency tree command: 'inspect dependencies for github.com/envoyproxy/gateway'. 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
View Raw JSON 
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-m2v6-2jmh-4c68",
  "modified" : "2026-07-16T19:19:17Z",
  "published" : "2026-07-16T19:19:17Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2026-53719" ],
  "summary" : "Envoy Gateway: Nil-dereference when SecurityPolicy targets TCPRoute without spec.authorization",
  "details" : "Vulnerability report without repro case. Repro case may be added later after harness is complete.\n\n**Preconditions (4):**\n- Tenant has SecurityPolicy + TCPRoute RBAC (baseline)\n- Tenant namespace permitted to attach TCPRoute to a Gateway listener\n- spec.authorization omitted (the trigger)\n- No admission webhook blocks the shape\n\n**Description:**\n\nA namespace-scoped tenant can deterministically panic the gatewayapi runner on every reconcile with a single CRD; the recover() in message/watchutil.go:53 keeps the process alive but unwinds the entire handle() callback in runner/runner.go:192, so xDS/Infra IR publishing stalls controller-wide until an admin deletes the object. Data plane keeps serving last-good config.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Go",
      "name" : "github.com/envoyproxy/gateway"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "1.8.0-rc.0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "1.8.1"
      } ]
    } ]
  }, {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Go",
      "name" : "github.com/envoyproxy/gateway"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "1.7.4"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/envoyproxy/gateway/security/advisories/GHSA-m2v6-2jmh-4c68"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/envoyproxy/gateway"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-476" ],
    "severity" : "MODERATE",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2026-07-16T19:19:17Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : null
  }
}