CVE-2026-42006

MEDIUM
Published May 12, 2026 Modified May 18, 2026 CWE-400

Description

An attacker can cause uncontrolled memory usage with excessive bracing over IMAP. The fix in CVE-2026-27857 was incomplete, only blocking one way of doing this, so there was still another way left open. In particular, the fix was for closing braces, but you could still use open braces to bypass the limit. Using excessive bracing, attacker can cause memory usage up to configured memory limit. Install fixed version, or configure vsz_limit for imap process to low value. No publicly available exploits are known.

CVSS v3.1 Score

4.3
MEDIUM
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L

EPSS — Exploit Prediction

0.0001
Probability of exploitation
0.02%
Percentile rank

EPSS estimates the probability that this vulnerability will be exploited in the wild within the next 30 days. A higher score means more likely to be exploited.

Weakness Type (CWE)

CWE-400 Uncontrolled Resource Consumption

Affected Products

Vendor Product
dovecot dovecot
open-xchange dovecot

References

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-42006? +
An attacker can cause uncontrolled memory usage with excessive bracing over IMAP. The fix in CVE-2026-27857 was incomplete, only blocking one way of doing this, so there was still another way left open. In particular, the fix was for closing braces, but you could still use open braces to bypass the limit. Using excessive bracing, attacker can cause memory usage up to configured memory limit. Install fixed version, or configure vsz_limit for imap process to low value. No publicly available exploits are known. It has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 4.3 (MEDIUM).
How severe is CVE-2026-42006? +
CVE-2026-42006 has a CVSS v3.1 score of 4.3 out of 10, rated MEDIUM. This is a medium-severity vulnerability that should be remediated as part of regular maintenance. The EPSS score is 0.0001, placing it in the 0th percentile for exploitation probability.
What products are affected by CVE-2026-42006? +
CVE-2026-42006 affects products from dovecot, open-xchange, specifically: dovecot. Check the affected products table above for specific version ranges.
How do I check if I'm vulnerable to CVE-2026-42006? +
You can use Secably's free Website Scanner to check your website for known vulnerabilities. For infrastructure scanning, use the Port Scanner to identify exposed services that may be affected. Check the vendor advisories linked above for specific patch and version information.

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