CVE-2026-18675

Kong Mesh: control plane denial of service via a malformed dataplane token with a non-string JWT kid

MEDIUM
5.3
CVSS Score
Published: August 12, 2026 at 06:36 PM UTC
Updated: October 23, 2026 at 07:10 PM UTC
1 product affected across 1 vendorKong Mesh

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Severity
MEDIUM5.3
Exploit prediction
EPSS 0.6%
SSVC
No known exploit

Description

The dataplane token validator in kuma-cp performs an unchecked Go type assertion on the JWT kid header. A token whose kid is a JSON number decodes as a float64 and triggers a runtime panic before any signature, claims, or authorization check runs. The panic terminates the entire kuma-cp process, HTTP API, the health and readiness endpoints, and xDS. Unauthenticated access to the dataplane gRPC server can trigger the crash with a malformed token A single request is a transient interruption; sustaining an outage requires repeated requests.

Affected

Our own answer: ranges merged, affected separated from platform-only, with confidence and review flags.

0 ≤ v < 2.7.292.10.0 ≤ v < 2.11.182.12.0 ≤ v < 2.12.142.13.0 ≤ v < 2.13.102.14.0 ≤ v < 2.14.22.8.0 ≤ v < 2.9.1902.10.02.12.02.13.02.14.02.8.0
Affected range stops below 2.11.18, so it looks safe — our inference, not a vendor statement
Affected range stops below 2.12.14, so it looks safe — our inference, not a vendor statement
Affected range stops below 2.13.10, so it looks safe — our inference, not a vendor statement
Affected range stops below 2.14.2, so it looks safe — our inference, not a vendor statement
Affected range stops below 2.7.29, so it looks safe — our inference, not a vendor statement
Affected range stops below 2.9.19, so it looks safe — our inference, not a vendor statement

SSVC — Action Prioritization

SSVCNo known exploitNot automatablePartial impact

SSVC signals action urgency (what to patch first), separate from CVSS which measures severity.

CVSS

5.3MEDIUMKong
Vector?

Quick Info

StatusAWAITING ANALYSIS
CWE
CWE-248CWE-704

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