CVE-2026-121437: lepture mistune · Inefficient Algorithmic Complexity
Affects lepture mistuneSource CVE Database V5
Not known to be exploited · CVSS 8.7 High : upgrade to 3.3.4 soon.
Data as of 3 Nov 2026, 14:58 UTC
Thin evidence
One scorer or none| CNA (VulnCheck) | CVSS 4.0 | 8.7 |
|---|---|---|
| CNA (VulnCheck) | CVSS 3.1 | 7.5 |
- Patch
- Available – fixed in 3.3.4
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:NExploitation evidence
Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 3 Nov 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 3 Nov 2026.
What to do
Upgrade lepture mistune to 3.3.4.
Affected software
| Product | Affected | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
| lepturemistune | Affected
| Fixed in
|
PyPImistunepkg:pypi/mistuneOther threats | Affected
| Fixed in
|
Check your own hosts for these packages with threat-finder (opens in a new tab), our free open-source scanner.
AI-suggested
Upgrade Mistune to version 3.3.4 or later, where this vulnerability is fixed. No other mitigation is indicated or required.
Description
Mistune versions from 3.3.0 up to but not including 3.3.4 contain a denial of service vulnerability due to inefficient algorithmic complexity in emphasis delimiter processing. Remote attackers can exploit this by submitting small markdown documents with repeated patterns, causing a quadratic-time loop that exhausts CPU resources and stalls workers. The issue is fixed in version 3.3.4.
References
- github.com/lepture/mistune/security/advisories/GHSA-qp42-r9j6-83g9 (opens in a new tab)
- github.com/lepture/mistune/commit/b4dd3284e52ec741ed9a227db29ade9017828e90 (opens in a new tab)
- vulncheck.com/advisories/mistune-3.3.0-before-3.3.4-quadratic-time-dos-via-process-emphasis-delimiters (opens in a new tab)