CVE-2025-59023VulnerabilityPublished 9 Feb 2026

CVE-2025-59023: PowerDNS Recursor · Insufficient Verification of Data Authenticity

Affects PowerDNS RecursorSource CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 8.2 High · fixed in 5.3.1 : patch PowerDNS Recursor soon.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 07:57 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

8.2High

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

EPSS: 0.3% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 22% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available – fixed in 5.3.1, 5.2.6, 5.1.8

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

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

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: High: There is a total loss of integrity, or a complete loss of protection. For example, the attacker is able to modify any/all files protected by the impacted component. Alternatively, only some files can be modified, but malicious modification would present a direct, serious consequence to the impacted component.
Availability: Low: Performance is reduced or there are interruptions in resource availability. Even if repeated exploitation of the vulnerability is possible, the attacker does not have the ability to completely deny service to legitimate users. The resources in the impacted component are either partially available all of the time, or fully available only some of the time, but overall there is no direct, serious consequence to the impacted component.

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v3.1 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 9 Feb 2026
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponised: 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 2026-10-26.

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.
Weaponised: Public exploit code exists in Metasploit or Exploit-DB, or CISA SSVC 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

Upgrade Recursor and pdns-recursor to 5.3.1, 5.2.6 or 5.1.8.

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
PowerDNSRecursor	Affected >=5.3.0 <5.3.1 >=5.2.0 <5.2.6 >=5.1.0 <5.1.8	Fixed in 5.3.1 5.2.6 5.1.8
GitHubpdns-recursor`pkg:github/pdns-recursor`Other threats	Affected >=5.3.0 <5.3.1 >=5.2.0 <5.2.6 >=5.1.0 <5.1.8	Fixed in 5.3.1 5.2.6 5.1.8

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

AI-suggested

Organizations should monitor PowerDNS vendor communications closely for official patches addressing CVE-2025-59023 and apply them promptly once available. In the interim, deploying DNSSEC validation can help detect and reject forged DNS data, mitigating cache poisoning risks. Network-level defenses such as filtering or reassembly of IP fragments can reduce the attack surface related to fragment manipulation. Configuring firewall rules to restrict DNS traffic to trusted sources and implementing anomaly detection for unusual DNS responses can provide additional layers of defense. Regularly auditing DNS server configurations and logs for signs of poisoning attempts is recommended. For environments where upgrading is delayed, consider isolating vulnerable DNS resolvers behind internal firewalls and limiting their exposure to untrusted networks. Finally, educating network and security teams about the specific nature of this vulnerability will improve detection and response capabilities.

Description

Crafted delegations or IP fragments can poison cached delegations in Recursor.

Impact

For European organizations, this vulnerability could lead to DNS cache poisoning attacks that undermine the integrity of DNS resolution. This can result in users or internal services being redirected to malicious sites, enabling phishing, malware distribution, or interception of sensitive communications. Critical infrastructure, financial institutions, and large enterprises that depend on PowerDNS Recursor for DNS resolution could experience service disruptions or data breaches. The potential for integrity compromise without affecting confidentiality or causing major availability loss still poses a serious risk, as DNS is foundational to network operations. Attackers exploiting this vulnerability could bypass security controls that rely on DNS, such as domain whitelisting or filtering. The absence of known exploits in the wild provides a window for proactive defense, but the high CVSS score and ease of exploitation warrant immediate attention.

References

docs.powerdns.com/recursor/security-advisories/powerdns-advisory-2025-06.html (opens in a new tab)

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 9 Feb 2026, 15:30 UTC

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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