CVE-2026-21965VulnerabilityPublished 20 Jan 2026

CVE-2026-21965: Easily exploitable vulnerability allows high privileged attacker with network access via multiple protocols to compromise MySQL Server. Successful attacks of this vulnerability can result in unauthorized ability to cause a partial denial of service (partial DOS) of MySQL Server.

Affects Oracle MySQL ServerSource CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 2.7 Low.

Data as of 25 Oct 2026, 19:02 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

2.7Low

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

EPSS: 0.3% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 29% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.

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

Attack Vector: Network
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: High
User Interaction: None
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: None
Integrity: None
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: High: The attacker is authorized with (i.e., requires) privileges that provide significant (e.g., administrative) control over the vulnerable component that could affect component-wide settings and files.
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: 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 20 Jan 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 2026-10-25.

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

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
Oracle CorporationMySQL Server	Affected >=9.0.0 <=9.5.0	Fixed in–
Mavencom.oracle/mysql-server`pkg:maven/com.oracle/mysql-server`Other threats	Affected =9.0.0	Fixed in–

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

AI-suggested

1. Apply patches promptly once Oracle releases updates addressing CVE-2026-21965. 2. Restrict network access to MySQL servers using firewalls and network segmentation to limit exposure to trusted hosts and services only. 3. Enforce the principle of least privilege by auditing and minimizing high-privileged accounts that have network access to MySQL servers. 4. Monitor MySQL server logs and network traffic for unusual authentication failures or service disruptions indicative of attempted exploitation. 5. Implement multi-factor authentication and strong credential management to reduce the risk of privilege escalation leading to exploitation. 6. Employ intrusion detection and prevention systems (IDS/IPS) tuned to detect anomalies in MySQL traffic patterns. 7. Regularly review and update MySQL server configurations to disable unnecessary protocols or services that could be exploited. 8. Conduct internal security assessments and penetration testing focusing on privilege escalation and network access controls around MySQL infrastructure.

Description

CVE-2026-21965 is a low-severity vulnerability in Oracle MySQL Server versions 9.0.0 through 9.5.0 affecting the Pluggable Authentication component. It allows a high-privileged attacker with network access via multiple protocols to cause a partial denial of service (DoS) on the MySQL Server. The vulnerability does not impact confidentiality or integrity but can degrade availability. Exploitation requires high privileges and no user interaction. There are no known exploits in the wild currently. The CVSS 3.

Impact

For European organizations, the primary impact of CVE-2026-21965 is the potential degradation of MySQL server availability, which can disrupt business-critical applications and services relying on database operations. Although the vulnerability does not compromise data confidentiality or integrity, partial denial of service can lead to operational downtime, affecting service level agreements and user experience. Organizations with high reliance on MySQL for transactional systems, web services, or internal applications may face interruptions, especially if the attacker has already gained high-level access. The requirement for high privileges limits the risk from external attackers without prior access, but insider threats or lateral movement within networks could exploit this vulnerability. The lack of known exploits reduces immediate risk, but the ease of exploitation once privileges are obtained necessitates proactive mitigation. In sectors such as finance, healthcare, and government within Europe, where database availability is critical, even partial DoS can have significant operational and reputational consequences.

References

oracle.com/security-alerts/cpujan2026.html (opens in a new tab)

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 28 Jan 2026, 20:23 UTC

Technical details

References

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