How severe is CVE-2022-3171?

CVE-2022-3171 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 4.3, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over an adjacent network with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity none, and availability low.

Is CVE-2022-3171 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 1% (64th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2022-3171?

CVE-2022-3171 primarily affects Google Google-protobuf. In total, 6 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.

How do I fix CVE-2022-3171?

Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.

When was CVE-2022-3171 published?

CVE-2022-3171 was published on 2022-10-12 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2022-3171

CVE-2022-3171 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Google Google-protobuf with a CVSS 3.x base score of 4.3. It is not currently listed as actively exploited by CISA, and its EPSS exploit-prediction score is low. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-20.

Key facts

Severity: Medium (CVSS 3.x base score 4.3)
EPSS exploit prediction: 1% (64th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-20
Affected product: Google Google-protobuf
Published: 2022-10-12
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

A parsing issue with binary data in protobuf-java core and lite versions prior to 3.21.7, 3.20.3, 3.19.6 and 3.16.3 can lead to a denial of service attack. Inputs containing multiple instances of non-repeated embedded messages with repeated or unknown fields causes objects to be converted back-n-forth between mutable and immutable forms, resulting in potentially long garbage collection pauses. We recommend updating to the versions mentioned above.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2022-3171?: A parsing issue with binary data in protobuf-java core and lite versions prior to 3.21.7, 3.20.3, 3.19.6 and 3.16.3 can lead to a denial of service attack. Inputs containing multiple instances of non-repeated embedded messages with repeated or unknown fields causes objects to be converted back-n-forth between mutable and immutable forms, resulting in potentially long garbage collection pauses. We recommend updating to the versions mentioned above.
How severe is CVE-2022-3171?: CVE-2022-3171 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 4.3, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over an adjacent network with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity none, and availability low.
Is CVE-2022-3171 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 1% (64th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2022-3171?: CVE-2022-3171 primarily affects Google Google-protobuf. In total, 6 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.
How do I fix CVE-2022-3171?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.
When was CVE-2022-3171 published?: CVE-2022-3171 was published on 2022-10-12 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (6)

cpe:2.3:a:google:google-protobuf:*:*:*:*:*:ruby:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:google:protobuf-java:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:google:protobuf-javalite:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:google:protobuf-kotlin:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:google:protobuf-kotlin-lite:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:fedoraproject:fedora:37:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

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