CVE-2026-42036: Axios HTTP Adapter Streamed Responses Bypass Vulnerability

MODERATE
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-vf2m-468p-8v99
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CVSS 5.3
CWE-770
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2026-42036 is a MODERATE (CVSS 5.3) http adapter streamed responses bypass vulnerability (CWE-770: Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling) affecting Axios libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves http adapter streamed responses bypass maxcontentlength. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 1.15.1, 0.31.1.

CVE-2026-42036 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2026-42036
GHSA Identifier GHSA-vf2m-468p-8v99
Severity MODERATE
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 5.3
CWE Classification CWE-770: Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling
Affected Product Axios
Package Ecosystem npm
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-2026-42036

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

axios fixed: 1.15.1 
npm install axios@1.15.1
axios fixed: 0.31.1 
npm install axios@0.31.1
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

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

npm ls axios

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Node.js application is affected by CVE-2026-42036, inspect your project dependencies using npm:

npm ls axios

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Axios in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 1.15.1), your application is affected.

Note: The npm ls axios command inspects dependencies declared in your package.json and lockfile; it does not perform automated runtime dynamic scanning.

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 Axios, 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 When responseType: 'stream' is used, Axios returns the response stream without enforcing maxContentLength. This bypasses configured response-size limits and allows unbounded downstream consumption. ### Details In lib/adapters/http.js: - 786-789: for responseType === 'stream', Axios immediately settles with the stream. - 797-810: maxContentLength enforcement exists only in the non-stream buffering branch. So callers may set maxContentLength and still receive/read arbitrarily large streamed responses. ### PoC Environment: - Axios main at commit f7a4ee2 - Node v24.2.0 Steps: 1. Start an HTTP server that returns a 2 MiB response body. 2. Call Axios with: - adapter: 'http' - responseType: 'stream' - maxContentLength: 1024 3. Read the returned stream fully. Observed: - Success; full 2097152 bytes readable. Control check: - Same endpoint with responseType: 'text' and same maxContentLength: rejected with maxContentLength size of 1024 exceeded. ### Impact Type: DoS / unbounded response processing. Impacted: Node.js applications relying on maxContentLength as a safety boundary while using streamed Axios responses.

CVE-2026-42036 Affected Axios Versions

2 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
1.15.10.31.1
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
axios
npm/axios
npm
≥ 1.0.0
< 1.15.1
1.15.1
axios
npm/axios
npm
< 0.31.1
0.31.1

References

GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/axios/axios/security/advisories/GHSA-vf2m-468p-8v99
NVD — CVE-2026-42036 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-42036
Axios Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/axios/axios

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-42036?
CVE-2026-42036 is a security vulnerability in Axios involving HTTP adapter streamed responses bypass maxContentLength under CWE-770: Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling.
Which Axios versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 1.15.1, 0.31.1 across affected packages: axios.
What version fixes CVE-2026-42036?
Upgrading to 1.15.1, 0.31.1 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is axios affected?
Yes, axios is affected in releases prior to 1.15.1, 0.31.1. Upgrade your dependency to 1.15.1, 0.31.1 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2026-42036?
CVE-2026-42036 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-2026-42036?
CVE-2026-42036 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 npm dependencies for CVE-2026-42036?
Run the dependency tree command: 'npm ls axios'. 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-vf2m-468p-8v99",
  "modified" : "2026-05-05T00:26:58Z",
  "published" : "2026-05-05T00:26:57Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2026-42036" ],
  "summary" : "Axios: HTTP adapter streamed responses bypass maxContentLength",
  "details" : "### Summary\n\nWhen responseType: 'stream' is used, Axios returns the response stream without enforcing maxContentLength. This bypasses configured response-size limits and allows unbounded downstream consumption.\n\n### Details\nIn lib/adapters/http.js:\n  - 786-789: for responseType === 'stream', Axios immediately settles with the stream.\n  - 797-810: maxContentLength enforcement exists only in the non-stream buffering branch.\n\nSo callers may set maxContentLength and still receive/read arbitrarily large streamed responses.\n\n### PoC\n\nEnvironment:\n- Axios main at commit f7a4ee2\n- Node v24.2.0\n\n Steps:\n\n1. Start an HTTP server that returns a 2 MiB response body.\n2. Call Axios with:\n   - adapter: 'http'\n   - responseType: 'stream'\n   - maxContentLength: 1024\n3. Read the returned stream fully.\n\nObserved:\n- Success; full 2097152 bytes readable.\n\nControl check:\n- Same endpoint with responseType: 'text' and same maxContentLength: rejected with maxContentLength size of 1024 exceeded.\n\n### Impact\nType: DoS / unbounded response processing.\nImpacted: Node.js applications relying on maxContentLength as a safety boundary while using streamed Axios responses.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "npm",
      "name" : "axios"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "1.0.0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "1.15.1"
      } ]
    } ]
  }, {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "npm",
      "name" : "axios"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "0.31.1"
      } ]
    } ],
    "database_specific" : {
      "last_known_affected_version_range" : "<= 0.31.0"
    }
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/axios/axios/security/advisories/GHSA-vf2m-468p-8v99"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-42036"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/axios/axios"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-770" ],
    "severity" : "MODERATE",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2026-05-05T00:26:57Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2026-04-24T18:16:30Z"
  }
}