CVE-2026-93436
Description
A flaw was found in vLLM. A remote attacker can exploit this vulnerability by submitting specially crafted inference requests that are rejected but still cause the system to retain decode-side metadata. This improper cleanup leads to an unbounded exhaustion of decode-worker memory, resulting in a denial of service (DoS) condition where the worker repeatedly restarts.
Statement
This flaw in vLLM's prefill/decode disaggregated deployments allows a remote, unauthenticated attacker to trigger a denial of service. By submitting specially crafted inference requests with max_tokens=0, an attacker can exhaust the decode-worker's memory, leading to service unavailability. This is considered Important due to the potential for unauthenticated remote service disruption.
Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) Score Details
Info alert:Important note
CVSS scores for open source components depend on vendor-specific factors (e.g. version or build chain). Therefore, Red Hat's score and impact rating can be different from NVD and other vendors. Red Hat remains the authoritative CVE Naming Authority (CNA) source for its products and services (see Red Hat classifications).
CVSS v3 Score Breakdown
| Red Hat | NVD | cve.org | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base Score | 7.5 | N/A | 7.5 |
| Attack Vector | Network | N/A | Network |
| Attack Complexity | Low | N/A | Low |
| Privileges Required | None | N/A | None |
| User Interaction | None | N/A | None |
| Scope | Unchanged | N/A | Unchanged |
| Confidentiality | None | N/A | None |
| Integrity Impact | None | N/A | None |
| Availability Impact | High | N/A | High |
Vector
Red Hat: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
cve.org: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
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