CVE-2026-33600: NULL Pointer Dereference in PowerDNS Recursor
CVE-2026-33600 is a medium severity vulnerability in PowerDNS Recursor versions 5. 2. 0, 5. 3. 0, and 5. 4. 0. It involves a null pointer dereference triggered by a malicious authoritative server sending a crafted RPZ (Response Policy Zone) that lacks a necessary consistency check. This flaw can cause the PowerDNS Recursor to crash, resulting in a denial of service condition. There is no indication of confidentiality or integrity impact.
AI Analysis
Technical Summary
This vulnerability in PowerDNS Recursor arises from improper handling of RPZ data sent by authoritative DNS servers. Specifically, a missing consistency check allows a crafted RPZ to cause a null pointer dereference, leading to a crash of the DNS recursor process and denial of service. Affected versions include 5.2.0, 5.3.0, and 5.4.0. The CVSS 3.1 base score is 4.4, reflecting a network attack vector with high attack complexity and requiring high privileges, no user interaction, and impact limited to availability. No official patch or vendor advisory detailing remediation is currently available.
Potential Impact
Successful exploitation results in denial of service by crashing the PowerDNS Recursor service. There is no impact on confidentiality or integrity. The vulnerability requires a malicious authoritative DNS server to send a specially crafted RPZ, and the attacker must have high privileges to exploit it. No known exploits are reported in the wild.
Mitigation Recommendations
Patch status is not yet confirmed — check the vendor advisory for current remediation guidance. Until an official fix is released, consider restricting or validating RPZ data sources to trusted authoritative servers to reduce exposure. Monitor for updates from PowerDNS regarding patches or workarounds.
CVE-2026-33600: NULL Pointer Dereference in PowerDNS Recursor
Description
CVE-2026-33600 is a medium severity vulnerability in PowerDNS Recursor versions 5. 2. 0, 5. 3. 0, and 5. 4. 0. It involves a null pointer dereference triggered by a malicious authoritative server sending a crafted RPZ (Response Policy Zone) that lacks a necessary consistency check. This flaw can cause the PowerDNS Recursor to crash, resulting in a denial of service condition. There is no indication of confidentiality or integrity impact.
AI-Powered Analysis
Machine-generated threat intelligence
Technical Analysis
This vulnerability in PowerDNS Recursor arises from improper handling of RPZ data sent by authoritative DNS servers. Specifically, a missing consistency check allows a crafted RPZ to cause a null pointer dereference, leading to a crash of the DNS recursor process and denial of service. Affected versions include 5.2.0, 5.3.0, and 5.4.0. The CVSS 3.1 base score is 4.4, reflecting a network attack vector with high attack complexity and requiring high privileges, no user interaction, and impact limited to availability. No official patch or vendor advisory detailing remediation is currently available.
Potential Impact
Successful exploitation results in denial of service by crashing the PowerDNS Recursor service. There is no impact on confidentiality or integrity. The vulnerability requires a malicious authoritative DNS server to send a specially crafted RPZ, and the attacker must have high privileges to exploit it. No known exploits are reported in the wild.
Mitigation Recommendations
Patch status is not yet confirmed — check the vendor advisory for current remediation guidance. Until an official fix is released, consider restricting or validating RPZ data sources to trusted authoritative servers to reduce exposure. Monitor for updates from PowerDNS regarding patches or workarounds.
Technical Details
- Data Version
- 5.2
- Assigner Short Name
- OX
- Date Reserved
- 2026-03-23T12:57:56.814Z
- Cvss Version
- 3.1
- State
- PUBLISHED
- Remediation Level
- null
Threat ID: 69e898dd19fe3cd2cd8c392f
Added to database: 4/22/2026, 9:46:05 AM
Last enriched: 4/22/2026, 10:01:11 AM
Last updated: 4/22/2026, 11:23:50 AM
Views: 5
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