CVE-2026-68981: Software Security Vulnerability Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-w96g-mj2p-wqjv
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CVSS 7.5
CWE-409
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2026-68981 is a HIGH (CVSS 7.5) security vulnerability vulnerability (CWE-409: Improper Handling of Highly Compressed Data (Data Amplification)) affecting Software libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The weakness occurs when the product does not handle or incorrectly handles a compressed input with a very high compression ratio that produces a large output.. Remediation is available in the latest vendor maintenance releases.

CVE-2026-68981 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2026-68981
GHSA Identifier GHSA-w96g-mj2p-wqjv
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 7.5
CWE Classification CWE-409: Improper Handling of Highly Compressed Data (Data Amplification)
Affected Product Software
Package Ecosystem Maven
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 7.5

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:H).

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 High (A:H)

How to Fix CVE-2026-68981

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

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

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2026-68981, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

mvn dependency:tree

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

Note: The mvn dependency:tree 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-409: Improper Handling of Highly Compressed Data (Data Amplification), where the product does not handle or incorrectly handles a compressed input with a very high compression ratio that produces a large output. In Software, 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

Apache NiFi 1.5.0 through 2.10.0 support gzip-encoded HTTP requests for the application REST API using a Jersey encoding filter. The framework enforced a configurable maximum request size on the compressed payload rather than the decompressed output, allowing a malicious client to send crafted requests that could consume excessive amounts of memory. Upgrading to Apache NiFi 2.11.0 is the recommended mitigation, which relocates response compression to Jetty Server and disables decompression of gzip-encoded HTTP requests.

References

NVD — CVE-2026-68981 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-68981
lists.apache.org/thread/vxrqn7poyf1w... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread/vxrqn7poyf1wx6gdy7c0dxqfqkctjngg
Software Security Information SECURITY
http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2026/08/03/13

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-68981?
CVE-2026-68981 is a security vulnerability in Software classified as a security vulnerability vulnerability under CWE-409: Improper Handling of Highly Compressed Data (Data Amplification).
Which Software versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to current release patches.
What version fixes CVE-2026-68981?
Upgrading to current release patches (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2026-68981?
CVE-2026-68981 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.5 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2026-68981?
CVE-2026-68981 is classified under CWE-409: Improper Handling of Highly Compressed Data (Data Amplification) (The product does not handle or incorrectly handles a compressed input with a very high compression ratio that produces a large output.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2026-68981?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree'. 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-w96g-mj2p-wqjv",
  "modified" : "2026-08-05T15:32:09Z",
  "published" : "2026-08-03T21:31:37Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2026-68981" ],
  "details" : "Apache NiFi 1.5.0 through 2.10.0 support gzip-encoded HTTP requests for the application REST API using a Jersey encoding filter. The framework enforced a configurable maximum request size on the compressed payload rather than the decompressed output, allowing a malicious client to send crafted requests that could consume excessive amounts of memory. Upgrading to Apache NiFi 2.11.0 is the recommended mitigation, which relocates response compression to Jetty Server and disables decompression of gzip-encoded HTTP requests.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H"
  }, {
    "type" : "CVSS_V4",
    "score" : "CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:L/VI:L/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:P/AU:Y/R:U/V:C/RE:M/U:Amber"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-68981"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.apache.org/thread/vxrqn7poyf1wx6gdy7c0dxqfqkctjngg"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2026/08/03/13"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-409" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : false,
    "github_reviewed_at" : null,
    "nvd_published_at" : "2026-08-03T20:17:29Z"
  }
}