CVE-2026-57436
Nokogiri: Possible Use-After-Free when setting `Document#root=` to an invalid node type
Nokogiri is an open source XML and HTML library for the Ruby programming language. Prior to 1.19.4, Nokogiri::XML::Document#root= validated only that the new root was a Nokogiri::XML::Node, allowing a DTD node to be set as the document root. The result is a heap use-after-free during garbage collection or finalization, leading to an invalid memory read or potentially a segfault. This vulnerability is fixed in 1.19.4.
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
- Low
Exploit likelihood
What each source reports
CVE List Score used
1.7
Nokogiri: Possible Use-After-Free when setting `Document#root=` to an invalid node type
Nokogiri is an open source XML and HTML library for the Ruby programming language. Prior to 1.19.4, Nokogiri::XML::Document#root= validated only that the new root was a Nokogiri::XML::Node, allowing a DTD node to be set as the document root. The result is a heap use-after-free during garbage collection or finalization, leading to an invalid memory read or potentially a segfault. This vulnerability is fixed in 1.19.4.
- Record
CVE-2026-57436- CVSS 4.0
- 1.7 Low
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:L/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:U - Weakness
- CWE-416
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
EUVDEUVD-2026-39427
1.7
Nokogiri is an open source XML and HTML library for the Ruby programming language. Prior to 1.19.4, Nokogiri::XML::Document#root= validated only that the new root was a Nokogiri::XML::Node, allowing a DTD node to be set as the document root. The result is a heap use-after-free during garbage collection or finalization, leading to an invalid memory read or potentially a segfault. This vulnerability is fixed in 1.19.4.
- Record
EUVD-2026-39427- CVSS 4.0
- 1.7 Low
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:L/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:U - Updated
- 2026-11-02
GitHub AdvisoriesGHSA-wjv4-x9w8-wm3h
1.7
Nokogiri: Possible Use-After-Free when setting `Document#root=` to an invalid node type
Summary
Nokogiri::XML::Document#root= validated only that the new root was a Nokogiri::XML::Node, allowing a DTD node to be set as the document root. The result is a heap use-after-free during garbage collection or finalization, leading to an invalid memory read or potentially a segfault.
Nokogiri 1.19.4 restricts Document#root= to element nodes, raising TypeError for any other node type.
This memory-safety issue affects only the CRuby implementation (libxml2). The JRuby implementation was not affected; the same input validation was added there for behavioral parity.
Severity
The Nokogiri maintainers have evaluated this as low severity. This is only triggered by a programming error. It requires application code to assign a non-element node such as a DTD as the document root via Document#root=. Nokogiri 1.19.4 now raises TypeError instead of allowing a use-after-free. It cannot be triggered by untrusted input or through normal use of the public API.
Mitigation
Upgrade to Nokogiri 1.19.4 or later.
As a workaround, applications that cannot upgrade should avoid assigning a DTD (or any non-element node) via Document#root=.
Credit
This issue was responsibly reported by Zheng Yu from depthfirst.com.
- Record
GHSA-wjv4-x9w8-wm3h- CVSS 4.0
- 1.7 Low
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:L/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:U - Weakness
- CWE-416
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
NVD
1.7
Nokogiri is an open source XML and HTML library for the Ruby programming language. Prior to 1.19.4, Nokogiri::XML::Document#root= validated only that the new root was a Nokogiri::XML::Node, allowing a DTD node to be set as the document root. The result is a heap use-after-free during garbage collection or finalization, leading to an invalid memory read or potentially a segfault. This vulnerability is fixed in 1.19.4.
- Record
CVE-2026-57436- CVSS 4.0
- 1.7 Low
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:L/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:U/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 - CVSS 3.1
- 5.3 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L - Weakness
- CWE-416
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSVBELL-CVE-2026-57436
5.3
- Record
BELL-CVE-2026-57436- CVSS 3.1
- 5.3 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L - Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSV
1.7
Nokogiri: Possible Use-After-Free when setting `Document#root=` to an invalid node type
Nokogiri is an open source XML and HTML library for the Ruby programming language. Prior to 1.19.4, Nokogiri::XML::Document#root= validated only that the new root was a Nokogiri::XML::Node, allowing a DTD node to be set as the document root. The result is a heap use-after-free during garbage collection or finalization, leading to an invalid memory read or potentially a segfault. This vulnerability is fixed in 1.19.4.
- Record
CVE-2026-57436- CVSS 4.0
- 1.7 Low
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:L/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:U - Weakness
- CWE-416
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
Show 4 moreShow less
OSVDEBIAN-CVE-2026-57436
5.3
Nokogiri is an open source XML and HTML library for the Ruby programming language. Prior to 1.19.4, Nokogiri::XML::Document#root= validated only that the new root was a Nokogiri::XML::Node, allowing a DTD node to be set as the document root. The result is a heap use-after-free during garbage collection or finalization, leading to an invalid memory read or potentially a segfault. This vulnerability is fixed in 1.19.4.
- Record
DEBIAN-CVE-2026-57436- CVSS 3.1
- 5.3 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L - Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSVGHSA-wjv4-x9w8-wm3h
1.7
Nokogiri: Possible Use-After-Free when setting `Document#root=` to an invalid node type
Summary
Nokogiri::XML::Document#root= validated only that the new root was a Nokogiri::XML::Node, allowing a DTD node to be set as the document root. The result is a heap use-after-free during garbage collection or finalization, leading to an invalid memory read or potentially a segfault.
Nokogiri 1.19.4 restricts Document#root= to element nodes, raising TypeError for any other node type.
This memory-safety issue affects only the CRuby implementation (libxml2). The JRuby implementation was not affected; the same input validation was added there for behavioral parity.
Severity
The Nokogiri maintainers have evaluated this as low severity. This is only triggered by a programming error. It requires application code to assign a non-element node such as a DTD as the document root via Document#root=. Nokogiri 1.19.4 now raises TypeError instead of allowing a use-after-free. It cannot be triggered by untrusted input or through normal use of the public API.
Mitigation
Upgrade to Nokogiri 1.19.4 or later.
As a workaround, applications that cannot upgrade should avoid assigning a DTD (or any non-element node) via Document#root=.
Credit
This issue was responsibly reported by Zheng Yu from depthfirst.com.
- Record
GHSA-wjv4-x9w8-wm3h- CVSS 4.0
- 1.7 Low
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:L/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:U - Weakness
- CWE-416
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSVUBUNTU-CVE-2026-57436
1.7
Nokogiri is an open source XML and HTML library for the Ruby programming language. Prior to 1.19.4, Nokogiri::XML::Document#root= validated only that the new root was a Nokogiri::XML::Node, allowing a DTD node to be set as the document root. The result is a heap use-after-free during garbage collection or finalization, leading to an invalid memory read or potentially a segfault. This vulnerability is fixed in 1.19.4.
- Record
UBUNTU-CVE-2026-57436- CVSS 4.0
- 1.7 Low
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:L/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:U - CVSS 3.1
- 5.3 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L - Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSVAZL-91077 No score
CVE-2026-57436 affecting package rubygem-nokogiri for versions less than 1.19.4-1
Nokogiri is an open source XML and HTML library for the Ruby programming language. Prior to 1.19.4, Nokogiri::XML::Document#root= validated only that the new root was a Nokogiri::XML::Node, allowing a DTD node to be set as the document root. The result is a heap use-after-free during garbage collection or finalization, leading to an invalid memory read or potentially a segfault. This vulnerability is fixed in 1.19.4.
- Record
AZL-91077- Updated
- 2026-11-02
Affected products
Affected packages
| Package | Affected | Fixed |
|---|---|---|
nokogiriRubyGems |
before 1.19.4 | 1.19.4 |
rubygem-nokogiriAzure Linux:3 |
before 1.19.4-1 | 1.19.4-1 |
ruby-nokogiriAlpaquita:stream |
1.13.9-r1 up to 1.19.4-r0 | 1.19.4-r0 |
ruby-nokogiriDebian:12 |
All versions, plus listed versions 1.13.10+dfsg-21.14.2+dfsg-11.14.3+dfsg-11.14.3+dfsg-21.15.4+dfsg-1 Show 12 moreShow less1.16.0+dfsg-11.16.0+dfsg-21.16.2+dfsg-11.16.4+dfsg-11.17.2+dfsg-1~exp11.18.10+dfsg-11.18.10+dfsg-21.18.10+dfsg-31.18.2+dfsg-11.19.1+dfsg-11.19.3+dfsg-11.19.4+dfsg-1 |
None known |
ruby-nokogiriDebian:13 |
All versions, plus listed versions 1.18.10+dfsg-11.18.10+dfsg-21.18.10+dfsg-31.18.2+dfsg-11.19.1+dfsg-11.19.3+dfsg-11.19.4+dfsg-1 |
None known |
ruby-nokogiriDebian:14 |
before 1.19.4+dfsg-1, plus listed versions 1.18.10+dfsg-11.18.10+dfsg-21.18.10+dfsg-31.18.2+dfsg-11.19.1+dfsg-11.19.3+dfsg-1 |
1.19.4+dfsg-1 |
nokogiriRubyGems |
before 1.19.4, plus listed versions 1.0.01.0.11.0.21.0.31.0.4 Show 45 moreShow less1.0.51.0.61.0.71.1.01.1.11.10.01.10.0.rc11.10.11.10.101.10.21.10.31.10.41.10.51.10.61.10.71.10.81.10.91.11.01.11.0.rc11.11.0.rc21.11.0.rc31.11.0.rc41.11.11.11.21.11.31.11.41.11.51.11.61.11.71.12.01.12.0.rc11.12.11.12.21.12.31.12.41.12.51.13.01.13.11.13.101.13.21.13.31.13.41.13.51.13.61.13.7 |
1.19.4 |
ruby-nokogiriUbuntu:Pro:14.04:LTS |
All versions, plus listed versions 1.5.9-21.5.9-31.6.0-11.6.1+ds-11.6.1+ds-1ubuntu0.1~esm1 |
None known |
ruby-nokogiriUbuntu:16.04:LTS |
All versions, plus listed versions 1.6.6.2+ds-2build21.6.6.3-11.6.7-11.6.7.1-11.6.7.2-31.6.7.2-3build11.6.7.2-3ubuntu0.1 |
None known |
ruby-nokogiriUbuntu:18.04:LTS |
All versions, plus listed versions 1.8.0-11.8.1-11.8.1-1build11.8.2-1build11.8.2-1ubuntu0.1 |
None known |
Show 6 moreShow less
| Package | Affected | Fixed |
|---|---|---|
ruby-nokogiriUbuntu:Pro:20.04:LTS |
All versions, plus listed versions 1.10.3+dfsg1-21.10.4+dfsg1-11.10.7+dfsg1-11.10.7+dfsg1-21.10.7+dfsg1-2build11.10.7+dfsg1-2ubuntu0.1~esm2 |
None known |
ruby-nokogiriUbuntu:Pro:22.04:LTS |
All versions, plus listed versions 1.11.1+dfsg-2ubuntu11.11.7+dfsg-31.11.7+dfsg-3build11.13.1+dfsg-21.13.1+dfsg-2ubuntu0.1~esm1 |
None known |
ruby-nokogiriUbuntu:24.04:LTS |
All versions, plus listed versions 1.14.3+dfsg-21.16.2+dfsg-11.16.2+dfsg-1build1 |
None known |
ruby-nokogiriUbuntu:25.10 |
All versions, plus listed versions 1.16.4+dfsg-1build11.18.2+dfsg-1build1 |
None known |
ruby-nokogiriUbuntu:26.10 |
All versions, plus listed versions 1.18.10+dfsg-31.19.1+dfsg-11.19.3+dfsg-11.19.4+dfsg-1 |
None known |
ruby-nokogiriUbuntu:26.04:LTS |
All versions, plus listed versions 1.18.2+dfsg-1build11.18.10+dfsg-21.18.10+dfsg-3 |
None known |
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-2026-57436 is a low vulnerability (CVSS 1.7) in Nokogiri, published June 19, 2026. No source lists public exploit code. EPSS puts the chance of exploitation in the next 30 days at 0.40%, the 34th percentile. Fixed in nokogiri 1.19.4.
References
github.com/sparklemotion/nokogiri/security/advisories/GHSA-wjv4-x9w8-wm3h
github.com/advisories/GHSA-wjv4-x9w8-wm3h
nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-57436
docs.bell-sw.com/security/cves/CVE-2026-57436
github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/tree/main/cves/2026/57xxx/CVE-2026-57436.json
security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2026-57436
github.com/sparklemotion/nokogiri
ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2026-57436
cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-57436
Left out here: 144 versions. The JSON record has them.