gRPC Erlang package vulnerable to Remote Code Execution with attacker-controlled gRPC payloads (CVE-2026-48853)
Published Last modified Sources: CVE.org, OSV, Hersteller, EUVD
What is affected, what to do
Deserialization of Untrusted Data and Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling vulnerabilities in elixir-grpc grpc allow unauthenticated attackers to crash the BEAM node via atom table exhaustion and, when a decoded term flows into a call site that invokes it, achieve remote code execution on the server. 'Elixir.GRPC.Codec.Erlpack':decode/2 (lib/grpc/codec/erlpack.ex) calls :erlang.binary_to_term/1 on the raw gRPC message body without the :safe option, no size bound, and no type guard. Any unauthenticated peer that sends a request with Content-Type: application/grpc+erlpack can send a crafted payload that mints arbitrary new atoms (which are never garbage-collected, exhausting the bounded atom table and crashing the VM) or that encodes a fun term which, if applied anywhere downstream, executes attacker-controlled code inside the server process.
Update Elixir-grpc Grpc to version 1.0.0.
- Affected
- Elixir-grpc Grpc
lt 0.4.0..1.0.0
- Elixir-grpc Grpc
- Fixed in
- Elixir-grpc Grpc
1.0.0
- Elixir-grpc Grpc
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Metrics
9.2
XIEM Effective CVSS
Highest available CVSS rating from NVD and vendor data.
Source: NVD, CVSS v4
9.2
CVSS v4
Severity Critical on the scale from 0 to 10.
Source: CVE.org, OSV, Hersteller, EUVD
0.8 %
EPSS score
Low — model estimates < 1% exploitation likelihood.
Source: FIRST EPSS, percentile 56.6
Show all metrics
- Severity
- Critical
Priority (0–325)
The priority score is a consolidated metric that condenses several individual signals into a single, action-guiding ranking: technical severity (CVSS), exploitation likelihood (EPSS), known-exploited status (KEV) and the context of the affected asset. The aim is to answer the only truly important question in vulnerability management: what first?
Read in glossary- 89.83 Methodology
Exploit maturity
An exploit is code or a technique that specifically uses a concrete vulnerability to force unintended behaviour — such as executing code or escalating privileges. It is the tool that turns a theoretical flaw into a practical attack.
Read in glossary- no public PoC known
XIEM Effective CVSS
XIEM® is the tiered managed-security operating model from NEOSEC and a registered trademark of NEOSEC GmbH. It extends classic SIEM — the central collection, normalisation and correlation of security-relevant events — with endpoint forensics, network visibility and deception technology, and consolidates them into three building tiers: Sentry, Orchestrate and Command.
Read in glossary- 9.2 Methodology
CVSS v4
CVSS is the globally established, open standard for assessing the technical severity of a vulnerability on a scale from 0 to 10. It describes how easily a flaw can be exploited and what damage it can cause — but not how likely its actual exploitation is. CVSS and the complementary EPSS deliberately answer different questions.
Read in glossary- 9.2
EPSS score
The EPSS score is the absolute model output for an individual vulnerability: the estimated probability of real-world exploitation within the next 30 days, expressed as a value between 0 and 1 (i.e. 0 % to 100 %). A score of 0.42 means „the model estimates a 42 % chance of real-world exploitation within 30 days“.
Read in glossary- 0.8 %
- Low — model estimates < 1% exploitation likelihood.
EPSS percentile
The EPSS percentile is the relative position of a vulnerability within all EPSS-scored CVEs, expressed as a value between 0 and 1. A percentile of 0.90 means „this CVE has a higher EPSS score than 90 % of all other scored CVEs“. Unlike the EPSS score, it is not a probability — but a positioning within a ranking.
Read in glossary- 56.6
- High — this CVE ranks above the median of all CVEs scored today (rank ≥ 36%).
KEV status
The KEV catalogue is a list maintained by the US authority CISA of vulnerabilities for which active exploitation in the wild has been confirmed. It answers not the question „how severe?“ but „is it already being attacked?“ — thereby sharply prioritising patching.
Read in glossary- —
- Published
- CISA assessment (SSVC)
- Exploitation: proof of concept · automatable · Technical impact: total
- Source: CISA Vulnrichment, as of 16 June 2026
CWE
CWE is a catalogue of typical weakness types in software and hardware — such as flawed input validation, unsafe memory handling or poor authentication. Where a CVE names a concrete vulnerability in a concrete product, a CWE describes the underlying class of defect.
Read in glossary- CWE-502, CWE-770
Detection rules
No NEOSEC detection rule is available for this vulnerability yet.
Classification under NIS2 and CRA
Rule-based classification from exploitation status and severity. It does not replace a case-by-case assessment.
NIS2
NIS2 is EU Directive (EU) 2022/2555 to raise the level of cybersecurity across the Union. It substantially broadens obligations compared with the first NIS directive: more sectors, mandatory risk management, staged reporting duties and personal accountability of senior management.
Read in glossary- High technical severity: assess and remediate the vulnerability in vulnerability handling under Art. 21(2)(e) NIS2 and document the decision.
CRA
The CRA is EU Regulation (EU) 2024/2847 setting horizontal cybersecurity requirements for „products with digital elements“ — from industrial controllers and software to connected consumer devices. For the first time manufacturers must ensure security across the entire product lifecycle, handle vulnerabilities and provide security updates.
Read in glossary- From 11.12.2027, Annex I Part II CRA requires manufacturers of affected products with digital elements to handle vulnerabilities without delay and provide security updates.
ISO/IEC 27001
ISO/IEC 27001 is the internationally leading standard for an information security management system (ISMS). It describes a risk-based, process-oriented framework to systematically plan, implement, review and improve information security.
Read in glossary- Control A.8.8, management of technical vulnerabilities: assess relevance to your systems, plan remediation and keep evidence.
Description
Deserialization of Untrusted Data and Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling vulnerabilities in elixir-grpc grpc allow unauthenticated attackers to crash the BEAM node via atom table exhaustion and, when a decoded term flows into a call site that invokes it, achieve remote code execution on the server. 'Elixir.GRPC.Codec.Erlpack':decode/2 (lib/grpc/codec/erlpack.ex) calls :erlang.binary_to_term/1 on the raw gRPC message body without the :safe option, no size bound, and no type guard. Any unauthenticated peer that sends a request with Content-Type: application/grpc+erlpack can send a crafted payload that mints arbitrary new atoms (which are never garbage-collected, exhausting the bounded atom table and crashing the VM) or that encodes a fun term which, if applied anywhere downstream, executes attacker-controlled code inside the server process. This issue affects grpc: from 0.4.0 before 1.0.0.
Source: NVD (NIST), OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities), GitHub Security Advisories, ENISA EUVD, cvelistv5
Affected products
The following versions are affected. Older releases of the same product line are also vulnerable unless stated otherwise.
| Affected versions | Fixed in | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| elixir-grpc | grpc |
|
|
| hex | grpc |
|
|
Vendors and products
Weakness classes (CWE)
CWE-502Deserialization of Untrusted Data
Base
The product deserializes untrusted data without sufficiently ensuring that the resulting data will be valid.
Entry at MITRE CWE-502CWE-770Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling
Base
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.
Entry at MITRE CWE-770
References & sources
- github.comelixir-grpc/grpc/security/advisories/GHSA-grp7-v8xh-rj7hadvisory, Vendor advisory, related, euvd
- cna.erlef.orgEEF CNA record for CVE-2026-48853web, related, euvd
- github.comFix commit 272a97a in elixir-grpc/grpcfix, Patch, euvd
- hex.pmpackages/grpcpackage
- NVD (NIST)vuln/detail/CVE-2026-48853advisory
- github.comelixir-grpc/grpc/pull/540web
- github.comelixir-grpc/grpcpackage
- github.comelixir-grpc/grpc/releases/tag/v1.0.0web
- OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)OSV record EEF-CVE-2026-48853web, related, euvd
- github.comIntroducing commit 25bcc56 in elixir-grpc/grpcweb, related, euvd
Changes to this CVE
Who changed this CVE and when: NVD (analysis, affected products, CVSS), the CVE publisher (CNA) and additional providers such as CISA (ADP).
Record modifiedEEF
Description added or changed
New references:- https://cna.erlef.org/cves/CVE-2026-48853.html
- https://github.com/elixir-grpc/grpc/commit/25bcc569fe2cc4478531a6c546c923205fc751c9
- https://github.com/elixir-grpc/grpc/commit/272a97a5ea1b46af1819f14a831fcf35fc91f992
- https://github.com/elixir-grpc/grpc/security/advisories/GHSA-grp7-v8xh-rj7h
and 1 more reference
Show 10 original changes
Individual changes of this event as published by NVD Type Action Before After Description changed Deserialization of Untrusted Data and Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling vulnerabilities in elixir-grpc grpc allow unauthenticated attackers to crash the BEAM node via atom table exhaustion and, when a decoded term flows into a call site that invokes it, achieve remote code execution on the server. 'Elixir.GRPC.Codec.Erlpack':decode/2 (lib/grpc/codec/erlpack.ex) calls :erlang.binary_to_term/1 on the raw gRPC message body without the :safe option, no size bound, and no type guard. Any unauthenticated peer that sends a request with Content-Type: application/grpc+erlpack can send a crafted payload that mints arbitrary new atoms (which are never garbage-collected, exhausting the bounded atom table and crashing the VM) or that encodes a fun term which, if applied anywhere downstream, executes attacker-controlled code inside the server process. This issue affects grpc from 0.4.0 before 1.0.0.Deserialization of Untrusted Data and Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling vulnerabilities in elixir-grpc grpc allow unauthenticated attackers to crash the BEAM node via atom table exhaustion and, when a decoded term flows into a call site that invokes it, achieve remote code execution on the server. 'Elixir.GRPC.Codec.Erlpack':decode/2 (lib/grpc/codec/erlpack.ex) calls :erlang.binary_to_term/1 on the raw gRPC message body without the :safe option, no size bound, and no type guard. Any unauthenticated peer that sends a request with Content-Type: application/grpc+erlpack can send a crafted payload that mints arbitrary new atoms (which are never garbage-collected, exhausting the bounded atom table and crashing the VM) or that encodes a fun term which, if applied anywhere downstream, executes attacker-controlled code inside the server process. This issue affects grpc: from 0.4.0 before 1.0.0.Reference added —https://cna.erlef.org/cves/CVE-2026-48853.htmlReference added —https://github.com/elixir-grpc/grpc/commit/25bcc569fe2cc4478531a6c546c923205fc751c9Reference added —https://github.com/elixir-grpc/grpc/commit/272a97a5ea1b46af1819f14a831fcf35fc91f992Reference added —https://github.com/elixir-grpc/grpc/security/advisories/GHSA-grp7-v8xh-rj7hReference added —https://osv.dev/vulnerability/EEF-CVE-2026-48853Reference removed https://cna.erlef.org/cves/CVE-2026-48853.html—Reference removed https://github.com/elixir-grpc/grpc/commit/272a97a5ea1b46af1819f14a831fcf35fc91f992—Reference removed https://github.com/elixir-grpc/grpc/security/advisories/GHSA-grp7-v8xh-rj7h—Reference removed https://osv.dev/vulnerability/EEF-CVE-2026-48853—Source identifier: 6b3ad84c-e1a6-4bf7-a703-f496b71e49db
Record modifiedCISA ADP
Show 2 original changes
Individual changes of this event as published by NVD Type Action Before After Reference added —https://github.com/elixir-grpc/grpc/security/advisories/GHSA-grp7-v8xh-rj7hReference removed https://github.com/elixir-grpc/grpc/security/advisories/GHSA-grp7-v8xh-rj7h—Source identifier: 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0
Record modifiedCISA ADP
Show the original change
Individual changes of this event as published by NVD Type Action Before After Reference added —https://github.com/elixir-grpc/grpc/security/advisories/GHSA-grp7-v8xh-rj7hSource identifier: 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0
ReceivedEEF
CVSS V4.0: AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
Weakness type: CWE-502, CWE-770
Description added or changed
Show 8 original changes
Individual changes of this event as published by NVD Type Action Before After Description added —Deserialization of Untrusted Data and Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling vulnerabilities in elixir-grpc grpc allow unauthenticated attackers to crash the BEAM node via atom table exhaustion and, when a decoded term flows into a call site that invokes it, achieve remote code execution on the server. 'Elixir.GRPC.Codec.Erlpack':decode/2 (lib/grpc/codec/erlpack.ex) calls :erlang.binary_to_term/1 on the raw gRPC message body without the :safe option, no size bound, and no type guard. Any unauthenticated peer that sends a request with Content-Type: application/grpc+erlpack can send a crafted payload that mints arbitrary new atoms (which are never garbage-collected, exhausting the bounded atom table and crashing the VM) or that encodes a fun term which, if applied anywhere downstream, executes attacker-controlled code inside the server process. This issue affects grpc from 0.4.0 before 1.0.0.CVSS added —AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/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:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:XWeakness type (CWE) added —CWE-502Weakness type (CWE) added —CWE-770Reference added —https://cna.erlef.org/cves/CVE-2026-48853.htmlReference added —https://github.com/elixir-grpc/grpc/commit/272a97a5ea1b46af1819f14a831fcf35fc91f992Reference added —https://github.com/elixir-grpc/grpc/security/advisories/GHSA-grp7-v8xh-rj7hReference added —https://osv.dev/vulnerability/EEF-CVE-2026-48853Source identifier: 6b3ad84c-e1a6-4bf7-a703-f496b71e49db
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<a href="https://intel.neosec.eu/en/cve/CVE-2026-48853"><img src="https://intel.neosec.eu/badge/cve/CVE-2026-48853.svg?lang=en" alt="CVE-2026-48853 – NEOSEC Intel" height="20"></a>