CVE-2025-47950 — CoreDNS Vulnerable to DoQ Memory Exhaustion via Stream Amplification
CoreDNS is a DNS server that chains plugins. In versions prior to 1.12.2, a Denial of Service (DoS) vulnerability exists in the CoreDNS DNS-over-QUIC (DoQ) server implementation. The server previously created a new goroutine for every incoming QUIC stream without imposing any limits on the number of concurrent streams or goroutines. A remote, unauthenticated attacker could open a large number of streams, leading to uncontrolled memory consumption and eventually causing an Out Of Memory (OOM) crash — especially in containerized or memory-constrained environments. The patch in version 1.12.2 introduces two key mitigation mechanisms: `max_streams`, which caps the number of concurrent QUIC streams per connection with a default value of `256`; and `worker_pool_size`, which Introduces a server-wide, bounded worker pool to process incoming streams with a default value of `1024`. This eliminates the 1:1 stream-to-goroutine model and ensures that CoreDNS remains resilient under high concurrency. Some workarounds are available for those who are unable to upgrade. Disable QUIC support by removing or commenting out the `quic://` block in the Corefile, use container runtime resource limits to detect and isolate excessive memory usage, and/or monitor QUIC connection patterns and alert on anomalies.
Who exploits it and how urgent it is
A 0–100 score combining confirmed exploitation, ransomware and APT use, public exploits, EPSS and severity.
How the score was calculated
- EPSS 1.2% (30-day exploitation probability)+10
- Technical severity (high)+6
- Automatable exploitation (SSVC)+3
The score orders the patch queue; it does not replace your asset context (internet exposure, criticality, compensating controls).
Triage
Is it exploited, how likely is exploitation, what does it touch, and how severe do the sources call it.
CISA SSVC assessment CISA
Three decision points CISA publishes for the CVEs it assesses (SSVC 2.0.3). A stakeholder decision, not a severity score.
Remediation
Fixes and mitigations documented by the sources — linked to the original advisory.
- Documented patch — github.com (NIST National Vulnerability Database)
- Go Github.com/coredns/coredns: fixed in version 1.12.2 — github.com (GitHub Security Advisories)
First 24 hours
Ordered from the record’s own fields — exposure first, because you cannot patch what you have not found. A rule-generated starting point.
- Identify exposed assets running the affected vendor/product/version combinations (Coredns Coredns, Coredns.io Coredns, Go Github.com/coredns/coredns).
- The attack is network-based and needs no privileges: restrict exposure (ACLs, VPN, WAF) until patched.
- Apply the fixed version or the patch documented under Remediation.
- Search available logs for exploit probes matching the vulnerability class (denial of service), errors and authentication anomalies.
Affected scope
Vendor, product and versions as the sources word them.
| Vendor | Product | Versions | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coredns | Coredns | version < 1.12.2 | Vulnerable | CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP |
| Coredns.io | Coredns | < 1.12.2 | Vulnerable | NIST National Vulnerability Database |
| Go | Github.com/coredns/coredns | < 1.12.2 | Vulnerable | GitHub Security Advisories |
Attack characteristics
The CVSS vector, decoded. It describes the attack, not your exposure to it.
Every base score collected
Sources score independently and may disagree; each row says who scored it and under which version.
| Score | Version | Severity | Expl. | Impact | Scored by |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7.5 | CVSS 3.1 | High | 3.9 | 3.6 | security-advisories@github.com via NIST National Vulnerability Database |
| 7.5 | CVSS 3.1 | High | — | — | GitHub, Inc. via GitHub Security Advisories |
| 7.5 | CVSS 3.1 | High | — | — | GitHub_M via CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP |
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H (score shown at the top: security-advisories@github.com) Weakness MITRE
Weakness class according to MITRE’s CWE catalog.
CWE-770 · Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling
Detection
Read off the CVSS vector and the weakness class. Starting points, not tested rules.
- Prioritize edge telemetry for the network-reachable component (proxy, WAF, IDS/IPS).
- Track CPU/memory spikes and availability drops correlated with request patterns.
Timeline
What happened to this CVE, newest first.
- 2026
- Fix documented
- Affected products added · go/github.com/coredns/coredns
- Affected products added · coredns/coredns
- SSVC assessment updated
- Record published
- Fix documented
- Affected products added · coredns.io/coredns
- CVSS changed · 7.5
- Source status changed · → Analyzed
- Record created in this database
- 2025
- CVE published
Source activity
Repeated readings are counted rather than listed.
- 2× References added · Oct 14, 2026 – Oct 14, 2026
- 1× Official description updated · Oct 14, 2026 – Oct 14, 2026
References
7 on the record
- github.com/coredns/coredns/security/advisories/GHSA-cvx7-x8pj-x2gw
- github.com/coredns/coredns/commit/efaed02c6a480ec147b1f799aab7cf815b17dfe1
- github.com/advisories/GHSA-cvx7-x8pj-x2gw
- www.usenix.org/conference/usenixsecurity23/presentation/botella
- datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/rfc9250
- nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-47950
- github.com/quic-go/quic-go
Elsewhere on this site
Related CVEs (same products)
- High CVE-2026-62309 CoreDNS: proxyproto plugin panics on PPv2 datagram with non-UDP transport — single 28-byte packet remote DoS Jul 16, 2026
- Low CVE-2026-62994 CoreDNS `k8s_external` headless AXFR can emit an empty transfer batch that panics the `transfer` plugin Jul 16, 2026
- Medium CVE-2026-62299 CoreDNS: rewrite-plugin EDNS0 response-revert nil-pointer panic (remote DoS) when a downstream plugin returns a response with no OPT record Jul 16, 2026
- Critical CVE-2026-35579 CoreDNS TSIG authentication bypass on gRPC, QUIC, DoH, and DoH3 transports May 5, 2026
- High CVE-2026-32936 CoreDNS DoH GET path missing size validation causes CPU and memory amplification May 5, 2026
- High CVE-2026-33190 CoreDNS TSIG authentication bypass on encrypted DNS transports May 5, 2026
Not in any source we poll
Listed rather than left blank: an empty field and an unmeasured one look identical on screen, and only one is a reason to look elsewhere.
- No confirmed IOCs, IP addresses, domains, file hashes, or malware artifacts supplied.
- No organization-specific asset inventory, compensating-control status, or patch deployment evidence supplied.
- No exploit packet captures, log samples, or incident case IDs supplied.
Answered from this record
Text assembled only from the fields above — no additional claims.
What should defenders know first?
CVE-2025-47950 is "CoreDNS Vulnerable to DoQ Memory Exhaustion via Stream Amplification", rated High. It affects Coredns (Coredns); versions are in the scope table. It is not in CISA KEV, which does not rule out exploitation. CVSS 7.5 describes technical severity. EPSS 1.19% estimates the probability of exploitation in 30 days; neither replaces your asset context. First verify whether exposed or business-critical assets run the affected versions, apply vendor fixes or mitigations, and preserve logs for review.
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