CVE-2026-120194VulnerabilityPublished 31 Oct 2026Updated 5 Nov 2026

json-glib

Affects json-glibSource GCVE Database

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Authoritative record:CVE-2026-120194· High 7.5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 7.5 High.

Data as of 5 Nov 2026, 12:47 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

7.5High

How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.

Thin evidence

One scorer or none

CVSS scores by source
CNA (redhat)	CVSS 3.1	7.5

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

Attack Vector: Network
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: None
User Interaction: None
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: None
Integrity: None
Availability: High

Bold values are the worst case: easiest to exploit or largest impact.

Attack Vector: Network: The vulnerable component is bound to the network stack and the set of possible attackers extends beyond the other options listed, up to and including the entire Internet. Such a vulnerability is often termed 'remotely exploitable' and can be thought of as an attack being exploitable at the protocol level one or more network hops away (e.g., across one or more routers).
Attack Complexity: Low: Specialized access conditions or extenuating circumstances do not exist. An attacker can expect repeatable success against the vulnerable component.
Privileges Required: None: The attacker is unauthorized prior to attack, and therefore does not require any access to settings or files to carry out an attack.
User Interaction: None: The vulnerable system can be exploited without any interaction from any user.
Scope: Unchanged: An exploited vulnerability can only affect resources managed by the same security authority. In this case, the vulnerable component and the impacted component are either the same, or both are managed by the same security authority.
Confidentiality: None: There is no loss of confidentiality within the impacted component.
Integrity: None: There is no loss of integrity within the impacted component.
Availability: High: There is total loss of availability, resulting in the attacker being able to fully deny access to resources in the impacted component; this loss is either sustained (while the attacker continues to deliver the attack) or persistent (the condition persists even after the attack has completed). Alternatively, the attacker has the ability to deny some availability, but the loss of availability presents a direct, serious consequence to the impacted component (e.g., the attacker cannot disrupt existing connections, but can prevent new connections; the attacker can repeatedly exploit a vulnerability that, in each instance of a successful attack, leaks a only small amount of memory, but after repeated exploitation causes a service to become completely unavailable).

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v3.1 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 31 Oct 2026
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponized: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 5 Nov 2026.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponized: A Metasploit exploit module or Exploit-DB entry exists (Metasploit scanner modules do not count), or CISA SSVC or the CVSS exploit maturity reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
Ubuntu 26.10json-glib`pkg:deb/ubuntu/json-glib?arch=source&distro=stonking`Other threats	Affected =1.10.8+ds-2	Fixed in–
Ubuntu 26.04 LTSjson-glib`pkg:deb/ubuntu/json-glib?arch=source&distro=resolute`Other threats	Affected =1.10.8+ds-1 =1.10.8+ds-2	Fixed in–
Ubuntu 24.04 LTSjson-glib`pkg:deb/ubuntu/json-glib?arch=source&distro=noble`Other threats	Affected 1.8.0-1 – 1.8.0-2build2 4 affected builds	Fixed in–
Ubuntu 22.04 LTSjson-glib`pkg:deb/ubuntu/json-glib?arch=source&distro=jammy`Other threats	Affected 1.6.2-1 – 1.6.6-1build1 4 affected builds	Fixed in–
Ubuntu 20.04 LTSjson-glib`pkg:deb/ubuntu/json-glib?arch=source&distro=focal`Other threats	Affected =1.4.4-2 =1.4.4-2ubuntu1 =1.4.4-2ubuntu2	Fixed in–
Ubuntu 18.04 LTSjson-glib`pkg:deb/ubuntu/json-glib?arch=source&distro=bionic`Other threats	Affected 1.2.8-1 – 1.4.2-3ubuntu0.18.04.1 4 affected builds	Fixed in–

Check your own hosts for these packages with threat-finder (opens in a new tab), our free open-source scanner.

AI-suggested

Do not evaluate untrusted or attacker-controlled JSONPath expressions using json_path_query() or related APIs until a fix is available. Prefer using fixed, application-defined JSONPath expressions. Specifically, reject or avoid slice expressions that specify a negative step. Monitor vendor advisories for patches and apply them once released.

Description

A vulnerability in json-glib's JSONPath slice evaluator used by json_path_query() can cause an infinite loop when processing slice expressions with a negative step. This flaw allows an attacker who can supply crafted JSONPath expressions to cause the application to hang, resulting in a denial of service. No confidentiality or integrity impacts have been demonstrated. There is currently no fixed upstream release available. The vulnerability affects multiple versions of json-glib as used in various Linux distributions including Ubuntu and Red Hat.

Impact

The vulnerability causes a denial of service through resource exhaustion by triggering an infinite loop in the JSONPath slice evaluator. This results in application hangs and unavailability. There is no impact on confidentiality or integrity. The flaw requires that the attacker can supply JSONPath expressions to the vulnerable application, which must evaluate them using json-glib's json_path_query() or equivalent APIs.

Summary

The json-glib library contains a flaw in its JSONPath slice evaluator function used by json_path_query(). When given a slice expression with a negative step (e.g., $[:5:-1]), the evaluator can enter a non-terminating infinite loop. This can be exploited by a remote attacker who can supply malicious JSONPath expressions to applications that evaluate them using json-glib APIs, causing the application to hang and leading to a denial of service. Applications that only use fixed, application-defined JSONPath expressions are not vulnerable. No confidentiality or integrity impact is associated with this flaw. The vulnerability is tracked as CVE-2026-120194 with a CVSS v3.1 score of 7.5 (high severity).

References

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