GHSA-rgqc-3x5p-6gwg: postgres-protocol Denial of Service Vulnerability

MODERATE
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CWE-20 CWE-248
Published
Advisory Summary

GHSA-rgqc-3x5p-6gwg is a MODERATE denial of service vulnerability (CWE-20: Improper Input Validation) affecting postgres-protocol libraries in the crates.io ecosystem. The issue involves panic decoding a malformed `hstore` value allows denial of service. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 0.6.12.

GHSA-rgqc-3x5p-6gwg at a Glance

CVE Identifier N/A
GHSA Identifier GHSA-rgqc-3x5p-6gwg
Severity MODERATE
CVSS v3.1 Base Score N/A
CWE Classification CWE-20: Improper Input Validation
Affected Product postgres-protocol
Package Ecosystem crates.io
Published Date
Last Updated

How to Fix GHSA-rgqc-3x5p-6gwg

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

postgres-protocol fixed: 0.6.12 
Upgrade postgres-protocol to 0.6.12
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 postgres-protocol

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your application is affected by GHSA-rgqc-3x5p-6gwg, inspect your project dependencies for postgres-protocol:

inspect dependencies for postgres-protocol

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of postgres-protocol in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 0.6.12), 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-20: Improper Input Validation, where the product receives input or data, but it does not validate or incorrectly validates that the input has the properties that are required to process the data safely and correctly. In postgres-protocol, 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

A malicious or compromised server can return a binary `hstore` value with an invalid internal length field, causing the client to panic while decoding it. Applications that connect only to a trusted database are not exposed; the risk applies to clients that may connect to untrusted or user-supplied servers, or whose connection can be intercepted by a man-in-the-middle.

GHSA-rgqc-3x5p-6gwg Affected postgres-protocol Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
0.6.12
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
postgres-protocol
 crates.io
< 0.6.12
0.6.12

References

Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/rust-postgres/rust-postgres/commit/a7cf84b5c46431cbca9d8ff50508c23f446efa7d
postgres-protocol Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/rust-postgres/rust-postgres
postgres-protocol Release RELEASE
https://github.com/rust-postgres/rust-postgres/releases/tag/postgres-protocol-v0.6.12
rustsec.org/advisories/rustsec-... WEB
https://rustsec.org/advisories/RUSTSEC-2026-0180.html

Frequently Asked Questions

What is GHSA-rgqc-3x5p-6gwg?
GHSA-rgqc-3x5p-6gwg is a security vulnerability in postgres-protocol involving Panic decoding a malformed `hstore` value allows denial of service under CWE-20: Improper Input Validation.
Which postgres-protocol versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 0.6.12 across affected packages: postgres-protocol.
What version fixes GHSA-rgqc-3x5p-6gwg?
Upgrading to 0.6.12 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is postgres-protocol affected?
Yes, postgres-protocol is affected in releases prior to 0.6.12. Upgrade your dependency to 0.6.12 or later.
What CWE is associated with GHSA-rgqc-3x5p-6gwg?
GHSA-rgqc-3x5p-6gwg is classified under CWE-20: Improper Input Validation (The product receives input or data, but it does not validate or incorrectly validates that the input has the properties that are required to process the data safely and correctly.).
How can I check crates.io dependencies for GHSA-rgqc-3x5p-6gwg?
Run the dependency tree command: 'inspect dependencies for postgres-protocol'. 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-rgqc-3x5p-6gwg",
  "modified" : "2026-08-24T19:47:49Z",
  "published" : "2026-08-24T19:47:49Z",
  "aliases" : [ ],
  "summary" : "postgres-protocol: Panic decoding a malformed `hstore` value allows denial of service",
  "details" : "A malicious or compromised server can return a binary `hstore` value with an\ninvalid internal length field, causing the client to panic while decoding it.\n\nApplications that connect only to a trusted database are not exposed; the risk\napplies to clients that may connect to untrusted or user-supplied servers, or\nwhose connection can be intercepted by a man-in-the-middle.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "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" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "crates.io",
      "name" : "postgres-protocol"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "0.6.12"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/rust-postgres/rust-postgres/commit/a7cf84b5c46431cbca9d8ff50508c23f446efa7d"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/rust-postgres/rust-postgres"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/rust-postgres/rust-postgres/releases/tag/postgres-protocol-v0.6.12"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://rustsec.org/advisories/RUSTSEC-2026-0180.html"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-20", "CWE-248" ],
    "severity" : "MODERATE",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2026-08-24T19:47:49Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : null
  }
}