How severe is CVE-2026-48988?

CVE-2026-48988 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 5.3, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity none, and availability low.

Is CVE-2026-48988 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 0% (22nd percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2026-48988?

CVE-2026-48988 affects Markdown-it Project Markdown-it. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.

How do I fix CVE-2026-48988?

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

Does CVE-2026-48988 have an EU (EUVD) identifier?

Yes. CVE-2026-48988 is tracked in the ENISA EU Vulnerability Database (EUVD) as EUVD-2026-37799.

When was CVE-2026-48988 published?

CVE-2026-48988 was published on 2026-06-17 and last updated on 2026-06-24.

CVE-2026-48988

CVE-2026-48988 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Markdown-it Project Markdown-it with a CVSS 3.x base score of 5.3. 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-400.

Key facts

Severity: Medium (CVSS 3.x base score 5.3)
EPSS exploit prediction: 0% (22nd percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
EU (EUVD) id: EUVD-2026-37799
Weakness: CWE-400
Affected product: Markdown-it Project Markdown-it
Published: 2026-06-17
Last modified: 2026-06-24

Description

markdown-it is a Markdown parser. Versions 14.1.1 and below contain a denial-of-service vulnerability when typographer: true is enabled, due to quadratic (O(n^2)) processing in the smartquotes rule. The issue stems from repeatedly modifying strings with replaceAt(), which performs O(n) slicing and concatenation per quote character. This can cause excessive CPU consumption when parsing quote-heavy, user-supplied markdown and may let attackers degrade or disrupt service availability. Although typographer is disabled by default, many production apps enable it for smart typography, making the issue relevant. This issue has been fixed in version 14.2.0.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2026-48988?: markdown-it is a Markdown parser. Versions 14.1.1 and below contain a denial-of-service vulnerability when typographer: true is enabled, due to quadratic (O(n^2)) processing in the smartquotes rule. The issue stems from repeatedly modifying strings with replaceAt(), which performs O(n) slicing and concatenation per quote character. This can cause excessive CPU consumption when parsing quote-heavy, user-supplied markdown and may let attackers degrade or disrupt service availability. Although typographer is disabled by default, many production apps enable it for smart typography, making the issue relevant. This issue has been fixed in version 14.2.0.
How severe is CVE-2026-48988?: CVE-2026-48988 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 5.3, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity none, and availability low.
Is CVE-2026-48988 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 0% (22nd percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2026-48988?: CVE-2026-48988 affects Markdown-it Project Markdown-it. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.
How do I fix CVE-2026-48988?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.
Does CVE-2026-48988 have an EU (EUVD) identifier?: Yes. CVE-2026-48988 is tracked in the ENISA EU Vulnerability Database (EUVD) as EUVD-2026-37799.
When was CVE-2026-48988 published?: CVE-2026-48988 was published on 2026-06-17 and last updated on 2026-06-24.

References

Affected products (1)

cpe:2.3:a:markdown-it_project:markdown-it:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

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