UBUNTU-CVE-2026-111496: Medium severity ubuntu/kafka vulnerability

Published Oct 29, 2026
·
Updated

Kafka Streams derives its stream-time clock from record timestamps. PunctuationSchedule.next() computed the next punctuation time as timestamp + (intervalsMissed + 1) interval with no overflow check. A record with a timestamp at or near Long.MAXVALUE advances stream time to that value, so the next stream-time punctuation overflows to a negative time. PunctuationQueue then re-queues that time and loops on it indefinitely while holding a lock, stalling the StreamThread. Impact: A single record is enough. The affected StreamThread stops processing, and because the record stays in the topic the hang returns on restart; an application whose partitions are all affected becomes unresponsive. Only the Streams application is affected, not the brokers or the cluster. Triggering it needs write access to a source topic whose topology uses stream-time punctuation, and a broker that stores the record: brokers from Apache Kafka 4.0.0 reject such a timestamp by default (log.message.timestamp.after.max.ms, one hour), so it is reachable only on older brokers or where that bound has been relaxed. Mitigation: Upgrade Kafka Streams to 4.2.2, 4.3.2, or 4.4.0. As defense in depth, keep log.message.timestamp.after.max.ms bounded on source topics and restrict write access to them. Resolution: From Apache Kafka 4.2.2, 4.3.2, and 4.4.0: the next punctuation time is computed with overflow-checked arithmetic (clamped to Long.MAXVALUE), and a rescheduled punctuation is re-queued only when its time moves forward.

Affected Software

1 affected component
ubuntu/kafka*

Remediation

Recommended actions to resolve this vulnerability, in priority order.

  1. Upgrade

    Upgrade Apache Kafka Streams to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 4.2.2
  2. Upgrade

    Upgrade Apache Kafka Streams to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 4.3.2
  3. Upgrade

    Upgrade Apache Kafka Streams to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 4.4.0
  4. Configuration

    Keep log.message.timestamp.after.max.ms bounded on source topics.

    Kafka source topics log.message.timestamp.after.max.ms = bounded
  5. Compensating control

    Restrict write access to Kafka source topics.

Frequently Asked Questions

1

Which deployments are realistically exposed to this issue?

Only Kafka Streams applications are affected; Kafka brokers and the cluster are not. A topology must use stream-time punctuation, and the source topic must accept a record with a timestamp at or near Long.MAX_VALUE.

2

What access does an attacker need to trigger the hang?

The attacker needs write access to a source topic consumed by the affected Streams topology. A single accepted malicious record is sufficient to stall the StreamThread.

3

Are default Apache Kafka 4.0.0 or later broker settings affected?

By default, Apache Kafka 4.0.0 brokers reject these timestamps through log.message.timestamp.after.max.ms, which is set to one hour. The issue remains reachable on older brokers or when that timestamp bound has been relaxed.

4

What can be done if Kafka Streams cannot be upgraded immediately?

Keep log.message.timestamp.after.max.ms at its default bound so brokers reject excessively future-dated records. Upgrading Kafka Streams to 4.2.2, 4.3.2, or 4.4.0 is the stated remediation.

5

Why can the issue return after restarting the application?

The triggering record remains in the topic, so the application can consume it again after restart and re-enter the hang. If all application partitions are affected, the application becomes unresponsive.

Contact

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