VulnerabilityPublished 31 Mar 2026

CVE-2026-24029: PowerDNS DNSdist · Incorrect Authorization

Affects PowerDNS DNSdistSource CVE Database V5

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Not known to be exploited · CVSS 6.5 Medium : upgrade to 2.0.3 or 1.9.12 when convenient.

Data as of 30 Oct 2026, 11:52 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

6.5Medium

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

EPSS: 0.1% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 4% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available – fixed in 2.0.3, 1.9.12

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

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

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: Low: There is some loss of confidentiality. Access to some restricted information is obtained, but the attacker does not have control over what information is obtained, or the amount or kind of loss is limited. The information disclosure does not cause a direct, serious loss to the impacted component.
Integrity: Low: Modification of data is possible, but the attacker does not have control over the consequence of a modification, or the amount of modification is limited. The data modification does not have a direct, serious impact on the impacted component.
Availability: None: There is no impact to availability within the impacted component.

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v3.1 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 31 Mar 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 30 Oct 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

Upgrade DNSdist and dnsdist to 2.0.3 or 1.9.12.

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
PowerDNSDNSdist	Affected >=2.0.0 <2.0.3	Fixed in 2.0.3
PowerDNSDNSdist	Affected >=1.9.0 <1.9.12	Fixed in 1.9.12
GitHubdnsdist`pkg:github/dnsdist`Other threats	Affected >=1.9.0 <1.9.12 >=2.0.0 <2.0.3	Fixed in 1.9.12 2.0.3

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

AI-suggested

To mitigate CVE-2026-24029, organizations should first verify the configuration of the early_acl_drop (earlyACLDrop in Lua) option on their DNSdist DoH frontends using the nghttp2 provider. Since the default setting is enabled, ensure it has not been disabled inadvertently or for specific custom configurations. Re-enabling early_acl_drop will restore proper ACL enforcement and prevent unauthorized clients from sending DoH queries. Additionally, administrators should monitor DNSdist logs for unusual or unauthorized DoH query activity that could indicate exploitation attempts. If available, upgrade DNSdist to patched versions that explicitly address this vulnerability once released by PowerDNS. In the absence of patches, consider implementing network-level controls such as firewall rules or DoH proxy restrictions to limit access to trusted clients only. Regularly audit DNSdist configurations and ACLs to ensure they align with security policies. Employ DNS query logging and anomaly detection to identify potential misuse. Finally, maintain awareness of updates from PowerDNS and the security community regarding this vulnerability and related threats.

Description

When the early_acl_drop (earlyACLDrop in Lua) option is disabled (default is enabled) on a DNS over HTTPs frontend using the nghttp2 provider, the ACL check is skipped, allowing all clients to send DoH queries regardless of the configured ACL.

Impact

The primary impact of CVE-2026-24029 is the bypass of access control restrictions on DNS over HTTPS queries handled by PowerDNS DNSdist. Unauthorized clients can send DoH queries even if they are not permitted by the configured ACL, potentially exposing internal DNS infrastructure to untrusted users. This can lead to information disclosure about internal network names or DNS configurations, undermining confidentiality. Additionally, attackers could leverage this access to perform DNS query manipulation or reconnaissance, impacting data integrity. Although the vulnerability does not directly affect availability, the increased unauthorized query load could degrade service performance or be leveraged in broader DNS abuse scenarios. Organizations relying on DNSdist for secure DoH frontends may face increased risk of DNS abuse, data leakage, and reduced trust in their DNS services. The lack of authentication and user interaction requirements increases the ease of exploitation, making it a significant concern for internet-facing DNS services. The vulnerability is particularly impactful for organizations enforcing strict client-based ACLs to limit DNS query access, such as ISPs, cloud providers, and enterprises with sensitive DNS data. Failure to address this issue could lead to unauthorized DNS traffic, complicating incident response and increasing exposure to DNS-based attacks.

CWE-863Incorrect Authorization (opens in a new tab)
Class weaknessLikelihood of exploit: HighCWE Top 25 (2025): #17OWASP Top 10 A01:2025: Broken Access Control (opens in a new tab)
The product performs an authorization check when an actor attempts to access a resource or perform an action, but it does not correctly perform the check.
Architecture and Design
Divide the product into anonymous, normal, privileged, and administrative areas. Reduce the attack surface by carefully mapping roles with data and functionality. Use role-based access control (RBAC) to enforce the roles at the appropriate boundaries.
Architecture and Design
Ensure that access control checks are performed related to the business logic. These checks may be different than the access control checks that are applied to more generic resources such as files, connections, processes, memory, and database records.
Architecture and Design · Libraries or Frameworks
Use a vetted library or framework that does not allow this weakness to occur or provides constructs that make this weakness easier to avoid.
OWASP Cheat Sheets
Authorization (opens in a new tab)
OWASP ASVS 4.0.3
V8.3.8 (opens in a new tab)
V13.4.2 (opens in a new tab)
V7.2.2 (opens in a new tab)
From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

References

dnsdist.org/security-advisories/powerdns-advisory-for-dnsdist-2026-02.html (opens in a new tab)

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 31 Mar 2026, 12:39 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-863

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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