CVE-2026-7541: CWE-770 Allocation of resources without limits or throttling in GitHub Enterprise Server
A denial of service vulnerability was identified in GitHub Enterprise Server that allowed an unauthenticated attacker to cause service disruption by sending crafted requests with deeply nested JSON payloads to an unauthenticated API endpoint. The endpoint parsed user-controlled JSON request bodies without size or depth limits, causing excessive CPU and memory consumption. This vulnerability affected all versions of GitHub Enterprise Server prior to 3.21 and was fixed in versions 3.20.2, 3.19.6, 3.18.9, 3.17.15, and 3.16.18. This vulnerability was reported via the GitHub Bug Bounty program.
AI Analysis
Technical Summary
This vulnerability (CVE-2026-7541) affects GitHub Enterprise Server prior to version 3.21. An unauthenticated API endpoint parses user-controlled JSON request bodies without enforcing limits on size or nesting depth. Attackers can exploit this by sending deeply nested JSON payloads, causing excessive CPU and memory usage that results in denial of service. The issue is classified under CWE-770 (Allocation of resources without limits or throttling). Fixed versions include 3.20.2, 3.19.6, 3.18.9, 3.17.15, and 3.16.18.
Potential Impact
Successful exploitation leads to denial of service by exhausting server CPU and memory resources, disrupting availability of GitHub Enterprise Server. The vulnerability requires no authentication and no user interaction, increasing risk. However, there are no known exploits in the wild at this time.
Mitigation Recommendations
Upgrading to GitHub Enterprise Server versions 3.20.2, 3.19.6, 3.18.9, 3.17.15, or 3.16.18 or later fully addresses this vulnerability. Since the vendor advisory indicates these fixed versions, applying these official patches is the recommended remediation. Patch status is confirmed by the vendor advisory. No additional mitigations are specified.
CVE-2026-7541: CWE-770 Allocation of resources without limits or throttling in GitHub Enterprise Server
Description
A denial of service vulnerability was identified in GitHub Enterprise Server that allowed an unauthenticated attacker to cause service disruption by sending crafted requests with deeply nested JSON payloads to an unauthenticated API endpoint. The endpoint parsed user-controlled JSON request bodies without size or depth limits, causing excessive CPU and memory consumption. This vulnerability affected all versions of GitHub Enterprise Server prior to 3.21 and was fixed in versions 3.20.2, 3.19.6, 3.18.9, 3.17.15, and 3.16.18. This vulnerability was reported via the GitHub Bug Bounty program.
AI-Powered Analysis
Machine-generated threat intelligence
Technical Analysis
This vulnerability (CVE-2026-7541) affects GitHub Enterprise Server prior to version 3.21. An unauthenticated API endpoint parses user-controlled JSON request bodies without enforcing limits on size or nesting depth. Attackers can exploit this by sending deeply nested JSON payloads, causing excessive CPU and memory usage that results in denial of service. The issue is classified under CWE-770 (Allocation of resources without limits or throttling). Fixed versions include 3.20.2, 3.19.6, 3.18.9, 3.17.15, and 3.16.18.
Potential Impact
Successful exploitation leads to denial of service by exhausting server CPU and memory resources, disrupting availability of GitHub Enterprise Server. The vulnerability requires no authentication and no user interaction, increasing risk. However, there are no known exploits in the wild at this time.
Mitigation Recommendations
Upgrading to GitHub Enterprise Server versions 3.20.2, 3.19.6, 3.18.9, 3.17.15, or 3.16.18 or later fully addresses this vulnerability. Since the vendor advisory indicates these fixed versions, applying these official patches is the recommended remediation. Patch status is confirmed by the vendor advisory. No additional mitigations are specified.
Technical Details
- Data Version
- 5.2
- Assigner Short Name
- GitHub_P
- Date Reserved
- 2026-04-30T18:42:48.142Z
- Cvss Version
- 4.0
- State
- PUBLISHED
- Remediation Level
- null
Threat ID: 69fd095dcbff5d86103c8516
Added to database: 5/7/2026, 9:51:25 PM
Last enriched: 5/7/2026, 10:06:42 PM
Last updated: 5/9/2026, 1:29:40 AM
Views: 14
Community Reviews
0 reviewsCrowdsource mitigation strategies, share intel context, and vote on the most helpful responses. Sign in to add your voice and help keep defenders ahead.
Want to contribute mitigation steps or threat intel context? Sign in or create an account to join the community discussion.
Actions
Updates to AI analysis require Pro Console access. Upgrade inside Console → Billing.
Need more coverage?
Upgrade to Pro Console for AI refresh and higher limits.
For incident response and remediation, OffSeq services can help resolve threats faster.
Latest Threats
Check if your credentials are on the dark web
Instant breach scanning across billions of leaked records. Free tier available.