ZeroHour

CVE-2026-27654

large

Buffer Overflow in NGINX ngx_http_dav_module via DAV MOVE/COPY with Alias

CVSS 4.0
8.8 high
EPSS
25%p98
Published
()
Modified
AI analysis

NGINX Open Source and NGINX Plus contain a buffer overflow (CWE-122/CWE-120) in the ngx_http_dav_module that can be triggered by an unauthenticated remote attacker. Exploitation requires a configuration that enables the DAV module's MOVE or COPY methods together with a prefix (non-regular-expression) location and an alias directive, after which crafted MOVE/COPY requests can overflow a buffer in the worker process. A successful attack can terminate the NGINX worker process (denial of service, high availability impact) or modify source or destination file names outside the document root, with integrity impact limited because the worker process runs with low privileges. Only deployments using that specific DAV configuration are affected, and versions that have reached End of Technical Support were not evaluated. No public proof-of-concept or CISA KEV listing exists yet, but EPSS assigns a 25.1% probability of exploitation within 30 days (98th percentile), and the ZDI advisory (ZDI-26-578) describes the underlying integer underflow as potentially leading to remote code execution.

What to do: Audit nginx.conf for dav_methods directives enabling MOVE or COPY inside prefix (non-regex) locations that use alias directives, and if present upgrade NGINX Open Source or NGINX Plus to a fixed release per the F5 SIRT advisory, since no fixed version numbers are provided in this data. As interim mitigation, disable MOVE/COPY DAV methods, remove the alias directive from the affected prefix location, or restrict DAV endpoints to trusted networks. Because End-of-Technical-Support versions were not evaluated, deployments on older releases should move to a supported version before patching.

Affected
f5 nginx open source
f5 nginx plus
Estimated exposure
largetens of thousands of internet-exposed NGINX servers with the vulnerable DAV configuration — NGINX runs on roughly a third of all web servers (tens of millions of sites per public surveys), but exposure is narrowed to likely tens of thousands because the ngx_http_dav_module is not compiled by default in NGINX Open Source and the…

Order-of-magnitude estimate by the model from install counts, market share and public scan data it knows; verify before quoting.

Description

NGINX Open Source and NGINX Plus have a vulnerability in the ngx_http_dav_module module that might allow an attacker to trigger a buffer overflow to the NGINX worker process; this vulnerability may result in termination of the NGINX worker process or modification of source or destination file names outside the document root. This issue affects NGINX Open Source and NGINX Plus when the configuration file uses DAV module MOVE or COPY methods, prefix location (nonregular expression location configuration), and alias directives. The integrity impact is constrained because the NGINX worker process user has low privileges and does not have access to the entire system. Note: Software versions which have reached End of Technical Support (EoTS) are not evaluated.

Vendors
f5
Products
nginx plus, nginx open source
Weakness
CWE-122, CWE-120
Vector
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:L/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X

In the news

ZDI-26-578: NGINX HTTP Dav Module Alias Directive Integer Underflow Remote Code Execution Vulnerability

An unauthenticated integer underflow (CVE-2026-27654, CVSS 8.1) in NGINX's HTTP Dav module alias directive enables remote code execution.

ZDI advisory ZDI-26-578 describes an integer underflow in the alias directive of the NGINX HTTP Dav module that allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code. Authentication is not required to exploit the vulnerability. ZDI rated the issue 8.1 on CVSS and assigned CVE-2026-27654.

ZDI Published Advisories · Aug 13, 2026VulnerabilityCVE-2026-27654