CVE-2022-31018
Denial of service binding form from JSON in Play Framework
Play Framework is a web framework for Java and Scala. A denial of service vulnerability has been discovered in verions 2.8.3 through 2.8.15 of Play's forms library, in both the Scala and Java APIs. This can occur when using either the Form#bindFromRequest method on a JSON request body or the Form#bind method directly on a JSON value. If the JSON data being bound to the form contains a deeply-nested JSON object or array, the form binding implementation may consume all available heap space and cause an OutOfMemoryError. If executing on the default dispatcher and akka.jvm-exit-on-fatal-error is enabled—as it is by default—then this can crash the application process. Form.bindFromRequest is vulnerable when using any body parser that produces a type of AnyContent or JsValue in Scala, or one that can produce a JsonNode in Java. This includes Play's default body parser. This vulnerability been patched in version 2.8.16. There is now a global limit on the depth of a JSON object that can be parsed, which can be configured by the user if necessary. As a workaround, applications that do not need to parse a request body of type application/json can switch from the default body parser to another body parser that supports only the specific type of body they expect.
Attack profile
How easy it is to exploit
- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges needed
- None
- User interaction
- None
What an attacker can affect
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- High
Exploit likelihood
What each source reports
CVE List Score used
7.5
Denial of service binding form from JSON in Play Framework
Play Framework is a web framework for Java and Scala. A denial of service vulnerability has been discovered in verions 2.8.3 through 2.8.15 of Play's forms library, in both the Scala and Java APIs. This can occur when using either the Form#bindFromRequest method on a JSON request body or the Form#bind method directly on a JSON value. If the JSON data being bound to the form contains a deeply-nested JSON object or array, the form binding implementation may consume all available heap space and cause an OutOfMemoryError. If executing on the default dispatcher and akka.jvm-exit-on-fatal-error is enabled—as it is by default—then this can crash the application process. Form.bindFromRequest is vulnerable when using any body parser that produces a type of AnyContent or JsValue in Scala, or one that can produce a JsonNode in Java. This includes Play's default body parser. This vulnerability been patched in version 2.8.16. There is now a global limit on the depth of a JSON object that can be parsed, which can be configured by the user if necessary. As a workaround, applications that do not need to parse a request body of type application/json can switch from the default body parser to another body parser that supports only the specific type of body they expect.
- Record
CVE-2022-31018- CVSS 3.1
- 7.5 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H - Weakness
- CWE-400
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
EUVDEUVD-2022-6163
7.5
Play Framework is a web framework for Java and Scala. A denial of service vulnerability has been discovered in verions 2.8.3 through 2.8.15 of Play's forms library, in both the Scala and Java APIs. This can occur when using either the Form#bindFromRequest method on a JSON request body or the Form#bind method directly on a JSON value. If the JSON data being bound to the form contains a deeply-nested JSON object or array, the form binding implementation may consume all available heap space and cause an OutOfMemoryError. If executing on the default dispatcher and akka.jvm-exit-on-fatal-error is enabled—as it is by default—then this can crash the application process. Form.bindFromRequest is vulnerable when using any body parser that produces a type of AnyContent or JsValue in Scala, or one that can produce a JsonNode in Java. This includes Play's default body parser. This vulnerability been patched in version 2.8.16. There is now a global limit on the depth of a JSON object that can be parsed, which can be configured by the user if necessary. As a workaround, applications that do not need to parse a request body of type application/json can switch from the default body parser to another body parser that supports only the specific type of body they expect.
- Record
EUVD-2022-6163- CVSS 3.1
- 7.5 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H - Updated
- 2026-11-02
GitHub AdvisoriesGHSA-v8x6-59g4-5g3w
7.5
Denial of service binding form from JSON in Play Framework
Impact
A denial-of-service vulnerability has been discovered in Play's forms library, in both the Scala and Java APIs. This can occur when using either the Form#bindFromRequest method on a JSON request body or the Form#bind method directly on a JSON value. If the JSON data being bound to the form contains a deeply-nested JSON object or array, the form binding implementation may consume all available heap space and cause an OutOfMemoryError. If executing on the default dispatcher and akka.jvm-exit-on-fatal-error is enabled—as it is by default—then this can crash the application process.
Form.bindFromRequest is vulnerable when using any body parser that produces a type of AnyContent or JsValue in Scala, or one that can produce a JsonNode in Java. This includes Play's default body parser.
Patches
This vulnerability been patched in version 2.8.16. There is now a global limit on the depth of a JSON object that can be parsed, which can be configured by the user if necessary.
Workarounds
Applications that do not need to parse a request body of type application/json can switch from the default body parser to another body parser that supports only the specific type of body they expect; for example, the formUrlEncoded body parser can be used if the Play action only needs to accept application/x-www-form-urlencoded.
- Record
GHSA-v8x6-59g4-5g3w- CVSS 3.1
- 7.5 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H - Weakness
- CWE-400
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
NVD
7.5
Play Framework is a web framework for Java and Scala. A denial of service vulnerability has been discovered in verions 2.8.3 through 2.8.15 of Play's forms library, in both the Scala and Java APIs. This can occur when using either the Form#bindFromRequest method on a JSON request body or the Form#bind method directly on a JSON value. If the JSON data being bound to the form contains a deeply-nested JSON object or array, the form binding implementation may consume all available heap space and cause an OutOfMemoryError. If executing on the default dispatcher and akka.jvm-exit-on-fatal-error is enabled—as it is by default—then this can crash the application process. Form.bindFromRequest is vulnerable when using any body parser that produces a type of AnyContent or JsValue in Scala, or one that can produce a JsonNode in Java. This includes Play's default body parser. This vulnerability been patched in version 2.8.16. There is now a global limit on the depth of a JSON object that can be parsed, which can be configured by the user if necessary. As a workaround, applications that do not need to parse a request body of type application/json can switch from the default body parser to another body parser that supports only the specific type of body they expect.
- Record
CVE-2022-31018- CVSS 3.1
- 7.5 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H - CVSS 2.0
- 5.0 Medium
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:N/I:N/A:P - Weakness
- CWE-400
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSV
7.5
Denial of service binding form from JSON in Play Framework
Play Framework is a web framework for Java and Scala. A denial of service vulnerability has been discovered in verions 2.8.3 through 2.8.15 of Play's forms library, in both the Scala and Java APIs. This can occur when using either the Form#bindFromRequest method on a JSON request body or the Form#bind method directly on a JSON value. If the JSON data being bound to the form contains a deeply-nested JSON object or array, the form binding implementation may consume all available heap space and cause an OutOfMemoryError. If executing on the default dispatcher and akka.jvm-exit-on-fatal-error is enabled—as it is by default—then this can crash the application process. Form.bindFromRequest is vulnerable when using any body parser that produces a type of AnyContent or JsValue in Scala, or one that can produce a JsonNode in Java. This includes Play's default body parser. This vulnerability been patched in version 2.8.16. There is now a global limit on the depth of a JSON object that can be parsed, which can be configured by the user if necessary. As a workaround, applications that do not need to parse a request body of type application/json can switch from the default body parser to another body parser that supports only the specific type of body they expect.
- Record
CVE-2022-31018- CVSS 3.1
- 7.5 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H - Weakness
- CWE-400
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSVGHSA-v8x6-59g4-5g3w
7.5
Denial of service binding form from JSON in Play Framework
Impact
A denial-of-service vulnerability has been discovered in Play's forms library, in both the Scala and Java APIs. This can occur when using either the Form#bindFromRequest method on a JSON request body or the Form#bind method directly on a JSON value. If the JSON data being bound to the form contains a deeply-nested JSON object or array, the form binding implementation may consume all available heap space and cause an OutOfMemoryError. If executing on the default dispatcher and akka.jvm-exit-on-fatal-error is enabled—as it is by default—then this can crash the application process.
Form.bindFromRequest is vulnerable when using any body parser that produces a type of AnyContent or JsValue in Scala, or one that can produce a JsonNode in Java. This includes Play's default body parser.
Patches
This vulnerability been patched in version 2.8.16. There is now a global limit on the depth of a JSON object that can be parsed, which can be configured by the user if necessary.
Workarounds
Applications that do not need to parse a request body of type application/json can switch from the default body parser to another body parser that supports only the specific type of body they expect; for example, the formUrlEncoded body parser can be used if the Play action only needs to accept application/x-www-form-urlencoded.
- Record
GHSA-v8x6-59g4-5g3w- CVSS 3.1
- 7.5 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H - Weakness
- CWE-400
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
Affected products
Affected packages
| Package | Affected | Fixed |
|---|---|---|
com.typesafe.play:play_2.13Maven |
2.8.3 up to 2.8.16 | 2.8.16 |
com.typesafe.play:play_2.12Maven |
2.8.3 up to 2.8.16 | 2.8.16 |
com.typesafe.play:play_2.13Maven |
2.8.3 up to 2.8.16, plus listed versions 2.8.102.8.112.8.122.8.132.8.14 Show 9 moreShow less2.8.152.8.42.8.52.8.62.8.72.8.82.8.8-RC12.8.92.8.9-RC1 |
2.8.16 |
com.typesafe.play:play_2.12Maven |
2.8.3 up to 2.8.16, plus listed versions 2.8.102.8.112.8.122.8.132.8.14 Show 9 moreShow less2.8.152.8.42.8.52.8.62.8.72.8.82.8.8-RC12.8.92.8.9-RC1 |
2.8.16 |
History
| Recorded | Changed | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| first indexed | CVE List, EUVD, GitHub Advisories, NVD, OSV |
Dates are when Every CVE recorded each change. Upstream dates may differ.
In short
CVE-2022-31018 is a high vulnerability (CVSS 7.5) in Lightbend Play Framework, published June 2, 2022. No source lists public exploit code. EPSS puts the chance of exploitation in the next 30 days at 1.72%, the 77th percentile. Fixed in com.typesafe.play:play_2.13 2.8.16.
References
github.com/playframework/playframework/security/advisories/GHSA-v8x6-59g4-5g3w
github.com/playframework/playframework/pull/11301
github.com/playframework/playframework/releases/tag/2.8.16
nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2022-31018
github.com/advisories/GHSA-v8x6-59g4-5g3w
github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/tree/main/cves/2022/31xxx/CVE-2022-31018.json
github.com/playframework/playframework