Highly exploitable, CVE-2026-72923 poses a critical security risk that could lead to severe breaches.
Status: Deferred
Last updated: 🕢 10 Sep 2026, 19:58 UTC
Originally published on: 🕕 08 Sep 2026, 18:20 UTC
Time between publication and last update: 2 days
CVSS Release: version 3
security-advisories@github.com
Secondary
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
CVE-2026-72923: In Microsoft.OpenApi.YamlReader from 2.0.0-preview.11 until 2.12.0 and from 3.0.0 until 3.10.0, and in Microsoft.OpenApi.Readers prior to 1.6.30, a small YAML OpenAPI document containing nested anchors and aliases can cause uncontrolled resource consumption when parsed through the public YAML reader APIs. YAML is parsed through SharpYaml, which represents aliases as shared nodes in a directed acyclic graph, so the parsed YAML graph stays small, but converting that graph to System.Text.Json.Nodes.JsonNode requires every alias to be materialized as an independent node because a JsonNode cannot be attached to multiple parents. Without a bound on that conversion work, a document with N nested anchors each referenced k times can require k^N materialized JSON nodes, leading to excessive memory allocation and process termination through out-of-memory conditions, a billion laughs style denial of service. The patched versions bound the YAML-to-JSON conversion by node count and nesting depth and report an OpenApiDiagnostic error instead of expanding without limit. This vulnerability is fixed in Microsoft.OpenApi.YamlReader 2.12.0 and 3.10.0, and Microsoft.OpenApi.Readers 1.6.30.
The exploitability of CVE-2026-72923 depends on two key factors: attack complexity (the level of effort required to execute an exploit) and privileges required (the access level an attacker needs).
With low attack complexity and no required privileges, CVE-2026-72923 is an easy target for cybercriminals. Organizations should prioritize immediate mitigation measures to prevent unauthorized access and data breaches.
A lower complexity and fewer privilege requirements make exploitation easier. Security teams should evaluate these aspects to determine the urgency of mitigation strategies, such as patch management and access control policies.
Attack Complexity (AC) measures the difficulty in executing an exploit. A high AC means that specific conditions must be met, making an attack more challenging, while a low AC means the vulnerability can be exploited with minimal effort.
Privileges Required (PR) determine the level of system access necessary for an attack. Vulnerabilities requiring no privileges are more accessible to attackers, whereas high privilege requirements limit exploitation to authorized users with elevated access.
Above is the CVSS Sub-score Breakdown for CVE-2026-72923, illustrating how Base, Impact, and Exploitability factors combine to form the overall severity rating. A higher sub-score typically indicates a more severe or easier-to-exploit vulnerability.
Below is the Impact Analysis for CVE-2026-72923, showing how Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability might be affected if the vulnerability is exploited. Higher values usually signal greater potential damage.
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