Critical Insecure deserialization exploit reference

CVE-2026-12481 — Deserialization of Untrusted Data in keras-team/keras

A vulnerability in keras-team/keras version 3.14.0 allows for arbitrary code execution due to improper handling of deserialization in the `Lambda` layer. Specifically, the `_raise_for_lambda_deserialization()` function fails to enforce the safe-mode guard when `safe_mode` is set to `None`, which is the default value when `from_config()` is called outside of a `SafeModeScope` context. This logic error conflates `None` (unset/default-deny) with `False` (explicitly disabled), bypassing the guard and allowing attacker-controlled `marshal` bytecode to be deserialized. Affected call sites include `keras.layers.deserialize(config)`, `keras.models.clone_model(model)`, and any direct invocation of `Lambda.from_config(config)` without an enclosing `SafeModeScope(True)`. This vulnerability can be exploited to achieve arbitrary OS-level code execution in the context of the server or user process.

Published Jul 3, 2026 · Updated Oct 15, 2026 · Sources: NIST National Vulnerability Database, CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP · CNA: @huntr_ai

Low

Who exploits it and how urgent it is

A 0–100 score combining confirmed exploitation, ransomware and APT use, public exploits, EPSS and severity.

No exploitation signal in the sources consulted so far.

How the score was calculated

Technical severity (critical)+10
CISA SSVC: exploitation "poc"+5

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.

Exploitation

Not confirmed

Not in CISA KEV — an absence of record, not proof it is unexploited.

EPSS FIRST

—

No EPSS score.

Affects

Keras

Keras and 1 more

CVSS base

9.8

Critical · 3 source(s)

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.

Exploitation

Proof of concept

none · proof-of-concept · active

Automatable

can an attacker script the kill-chain steps

Technical impact

Total

partial · total control of the vulnerable component

Remediation

Fixes and mitigations documented by the sources — linked to the original advisory.

No fix documented by the sources we poll. That does not mean none exists: check the vendor advisory.

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 (Keras Keras, Keras-team Keras-team/keras).
The attack is network-based and needs no privileges: restrict exposure (ACLs, VPN, WAF) until patched.
No fix documented in the sources: reduce exposure and monitor the vendor advisory.
Search available logs for exploit probes matching the vulnerability class (insecure deserialization), errors and authentication anomalies.

Affected scope

Vendor, product and versions as the sources word them.

Vendor	Product	Versions	Status	Source
Keras	Keras	version 3.14.0	Vulnerable	NIST National Vulnerability Database
Keras-team	Keras-team/keras	≤ latest	Vulnerable	CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP

Attack characteristics

The CVSS vector, decoded. It describes the attack, not your exposure to it.

Attack vector

Network

Attack complexity

Low

Privileges required

None

User interaction

None

Scope

Unchanged

Confidentiality

High

Integrity

High

Availability

High

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
9.8	CVSS 3.1	Critical	3.9	5.9	nvd@nist.gov via NIST National Vulnerability Database
8.8	CVSS 3.0	High	2.8	5.9	security@huntr.dev via NIST National Vulnerability Database
8.8	CVSS 3.0	High	—	—	@huntr_ai via CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H (score shown at the top: nvd@nist.gov)

Scoring entities (NIST, CNA, ADP) score independently; each score is shown with its origin. For prioritization we use 9.8 (NVD (NIST)) as a conservative provisional reference — not a definitive official score.

Weakness MITRE

Weakness class according to MITRE’s CWE catalog.

CWE-502 · Deserialization of Untrusted Data

Other CVEs with this weakness →

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).
Monitor serialized objects in requests and unexpected processes spawned by the runtime.

web/proxy/WAF logsnetwork IDS/IPSendpoint telemetry (EDR)application logs

Timeline

What happened to this CVE, newest first.

2026
Affected products added · keras-team/keras-team/keras
Oct 15, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
SSVC assessment updated
Oct 15, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Record published
Oct 15, 2026
CVSS changed · 9.8
Oct 15, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
Source status changed · → Analyzed
Oct 15, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
Record created in this database
Oct 15, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
CVE published
Jul 3, 2026 · @huntr_ai

Source activity

Repeated readings are counted rather than listed.

1× Official description updated · Oct 15, 2026 – Oct 15, 2026

References

1 on the record

huntr.com/bounties/59ceaed1-c8a3-4135-8f94-169ade02823d
Exploit, Third Party Advisory, NIST National Vulnerability Database

Elsewhere on this site

Keras
every CVE for this vendor

Insecure deserialization
same class

CWE-502
other pages naming this weakness

Related CVEs (same products)

High CVE-2026-12484 Unsafe Deserialization in keras.layers.TorchModuleWrapper.from_config Jul 19, 2026
Medium CVE-2026-12482 Path Traversal via Symlink Name Validation Bypass in keras-team/keras Jul 14, 2026
Medium CVE-2026-12480 Arbitrary HDF5 File Read via Virtual Dataset Bypass in keras-team/keras Jul 1, 2026
Medium CVE-2026-12479 Path Traversal in keras-team/keras Jun 22, 2026
High CVE-2026-11816 Path Traversal in keras-team/keras Jun 11, 2026
High CVE-2026-1462 Safe Mode Bypass in keras-team/keras Apr 13, 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 FIRST EPSS score.
No fixed version, patch or mitigation documented.
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-2026-12481 is "Deserialization of Untrusted Data in keras-team/keras", rated Critical. It affects Keras (Keras); versions are in the scope table. It is not in CISA KEV, which does not rule out exploitation. CVSS 9.8 describes technical severity. First verify whether exposed or business-critical assets run the affected versions, apply vendor fixes or mitigations, and preserve logs for review.

Comments

Moderated technical discussion. Read the community guidelines.

No comments yet.