rrrene html_sanitize_ex · Inefficient Algorithmic Complexity Vulnerability
Affects html_sanitize_exSource GCVE Database
Not known to be exploited · CVSS 8.2 High : upgrade to 1.5.3 soon.
Data as of 9 Nov 2026, 23:24 UTC
- EPSS
- 0.8% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 56% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
- Patch
- Available – fixed in 1.5.3
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:NExploitation evidence
Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 6 Aug 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 9 Nov 2026.
What to do
Upgrade html_sanitize_ex to 1.5.3.
Affected software
| Product | Affected | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
Hexhtml_sanitize_expkg:hex/html_sanitize_exOther 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
If you cannot patch yet, consider limiting the size and complexity of HTML inputs processed by html_sanitize_ex or applying rate limiting to mitigate potential denial of service attacks.
Description
CVE-2026-68750 is an inefficient algorithmic complexity vulnerability in the traversal engine of the rrrene html_sanitize_ex library. It allows an unauthenticated remote attacker to exhaust server CPU and memory by submitting sanitized HTML with a large flat run of sibling elements. The traversal function recursively flattens sibling lists inefficiently, causing quadratic time complexity relative to the number of siblings. This vulnerability affects all public entry points without requiring special configuration or scrubbers. Versions from 0.3.1 up to but not including 1.5.3, including 1.5.0-rc.0, are impacted.
References
- github.com/rrrene/html_sanitize_ex/security/advisories/GHSA-463q-p2fr-mh9p (opens in a new tab)
- nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-68750 (opens in a new tab)
- github.com/rrrene/html_sanitize_ex/commit/9f5ccedbed230930813f992a1e6906fcf485981e (opens in a new tab)
- cna.erlef.org/cves/CVE-2026-68750.html (opens in a new tab)
- osv.dev/vulnerability/EEF-CVE-2026-68750 (opens in a new tab)
- github.com/rrrene/html_sanitize_ex/commit/507a6fb95dd4c466cac8a8355d8989043e9fbcc1 (opens in a new tab)