What is CVE-2022-3212?

CVE-2022-3212 is a high-severity allocation of resources without limits or throttling vulnerability in axum-core (rust), affecting versions < 0.2.8. It is fixed in 0.2.8, 0.3.0-rc.2. The application allocates resources such as memory, threads, or file descriptors based on untrusted input without enforcing a cap.

How severe is CVE-2022-3212?

CVE-2022-3212 has a CVSS score of 7.5 (High). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.

Which versions of axum-core are affected by CVE-2022-3212?

axum-core (rust) versions < 0.2.8 is affected.

Is there a fix for CVE-2022-3212?

Yes. CVE-2022-3212 is fixed in 0.2.8, 0.3.0-rc.2. Upgrade to this version or later.

Is CVE-2022-3212 exploitable, and should I be worried?

Whether CVE-2022-3212 is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk.

What actually determines whether CVE-2022-3212 is exploitable, and how bad it is?

Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.

How do I fix CVE-2022-3212?

Upgrade: axum-core to 0.2.8 or later, axum-core to 0.3.0-rc.2 or later.

CVE-2022-3212 in axum-core

Q: How severe is CVE-2022-3212?

CVE-2022-3212 has a CVSS score of 7.5 (High). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.

Q: Which versions of axum-core are affected by CVE-2022-3212?

axum-core (rust) versions < 0.2.8 is affected.

Q: Is there a fix for CVE-2022-3212?

Yes. CVE-2022-3212 is fixed in 0.2.8, 0.3.0-rc.2. Upgrade to this version or later.

Q: Is CVE-2022-3212 exploitable, and should I be worried?

Whether CVE-2022-3212 is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk.

Q: What actually determines whether CVE-2022-3212 is exploitable, and how bad it is?

Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.

Q: How do I fix CVE-2022-3212?

Upgrade: axum-core to 0.2.8 or later, axum-core to 0.3.0-rc.2 or later.

Summary

axum-core has no default limit put on request bodies

<bytes::Bytes as axum_core::extract::FromRequest>::from_request would not, by default, set a limit for the size of the request body. That meant if a malicious peer would send a very large (or infinite) body your server might run out of memory and crash.

This also applies to these extractors which used Bytes::from_request internally:

axum::extract::Form
axum::extract::Json
String

The fix is also in axum-core 0.3.0.rc.2 but 0.3.0.rc.1 is vulnerable.

Because axum depends on axum-core it is vulnerable as well. The vulnerable versions of axum are <= 0.5.15 and 0.6.0.rc.1. axum >= 0.5.16 and >= 0.6.0.rc.2 does have the fix and are not vulnerable.

The patched versions will set a 2 MB limit by default.

Impact

The application allocates resources such as memory, threads, or file descriptors based on untrusted input without enforcing a cap. Typical impact: resource exhaustion leading to denial of service.

CVE-2022-3212 has a CVSS score of 7.5 (High). The vector is network-reachable, no privileges required, and no user interaction. A CVSS score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether this affects your application depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable in your environment. A fixed version is available (0.2.8, 0.3.0-rc.2); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.

Affected versions

axum-core (< 0.2.8) axum-core (= 0.3.0-rc.1)

Security releases

axum-core → 0.2.8 (rust) axum-core → 0.3.0-rc.2 (rust)

Kodem intelligence

Severity tells you how bad this could be in the worst case. It does not tell you whether you are exposed. Exploitability and impact are functions of runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A vulnerable package can sit in your dependency tree and never run.

Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter. Kodem's runtime-powered SCA identifies whether this CVE is reachable in your applications.

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Remediation advice

Upgrade the following packages to resolve this vulnerability:

axum-core to 0.2.8 or later; axum-core to 0.3.0-rc.2 or later

Kodem Kai can prioritize this vulnerability in your dependency tree and generate a fix recommendation.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2022-3212? CVE-2022-3212 is a high-severity allocation of resources without limits or throttling vulnerability in axum-core (rust), affecting versions < 0.2.8. It is fixed in 0.2.8, 0.3.0-rc.2. The application allocates resources such as memory, threads, or file descriptors based on untrusted input without enforcing a cap.
How severe is CVE-2022-3212? CVE-2022-3212 has a CVSS score of 7.5 (High). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.
Which versions of axum-core are affected by CVE-2022-3212? axum-core (rust) versions < 0.2.8 is affected.
Is there a fix for CVE-2022-3212? Yes. CVE-2022-3212 is fixed in 0.2.8, 0.3.0-rc.2. Upgrade to this version or later.
Is CVE-2022-3212 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2022-3212 is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk. Get a demo
What actually determines whether CVE-2022-3212 is exploitable, and how bad it is? Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.
How do I fix CVE-2022-3212?
- Upgrade axum-core to 0.2.8 or later
- Upgrade axum-core to 0.3.0-rc.2 or later