REDHAT-BUG-2352914: High severity Expr Expr vulnerability

Published Mar 17, 2025
·
Updated

Expr is an expression language and expression evaluation for Go. Prior to version 1.17.0, if the Expr expression parser is given an unbounded input string, it will attempt to compile the entire string and generate an Abstract Syntax Tree (AST) node for each part of the expression. In scenarios where input size isn’t limited, a malicious or inadvertent extremely large expression can consume excessive memory as the parser builds a huge AST. This can ultimately lead toexcessive memory usage and an Out-Of-Memory (OOM) crash of the process. This issue is relatively uncommon and will only manifest when there are no restrictions on the input size, i.e. the expression length is allowed to grow arbitrarily large. In typical use cases where inputs are bounded or validated, this problem would not occur. The problem has been patched in the latest versions of the Expr library. The fix introduces compile-time limits on the number of AST nodes and memory usage during parsing, preventing any single expression from exhausting resources. Users should upgrade to Expr version 1.17.0 or later, as this release includes the new node budget and memory limit safeguards. Upgrading to v1.17.0 ensures that extremely deep or large expressions are detected and safely aborted during compilation, avoiding the OOM condition. For users who cannot immediately upgrade, the recommended workaround is to impose an input size restriction before parsing. In practice, this means validating or limiting the length of expression strings that your application will accept. For example, set a maximum allowable number of characters (or nodes) for any expression and reject or truncate inputs that exceed this limit. By ensuring no unbounded-length expression is ever fed into the parser, one can prevent the parser from constructing a pathologically large AST and avoid potential memory exhaustion. In short, pre-validate and cap input size as a safeguard in the absence of the patch.

Affected Software

1 affected component
Expr Expr<1.17.0

Event History

Mar 17, 2025
Data Sourced
via Red Hat·02:01 PM
DescriptionSeverityAffected Software

Frequently Asked Questions

1

What is the severity of REDHAT-BUG-2352914?

The severity of REDHAT-BUG-2352914 is classified as high due to potential denial of service vulnerabilities.

2

How do I fix REDHAT-BUG-2352914?

To fix REDHAT-BUG-2352914, upgrade to Expr version 1.17.0 or later.

3

What systems are affected by REDHAT-BUG-2352914?

REDHAT-BUG-2352914 affects Expr prior to version 1.17.0.

4

What symptoms may indicate REDHAT-BUG-2352914 is being exploited?

Symptoms may include high CPU usage or unresponsive applications due to unbounded expression parsing.

5

Is there a workaround for REDHAT-BUG-2352914?

Currently, the recommended resolution is to update to a patched version, as no effective workaround is available.

Contact

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