CVE-2026-34835

Rack::Request parses the Host header using an AUTHORITY regular expression that accepts characters not permitted in RFC-compliant hostnames, including /, ?, #, and @. Because req.host returns the full parsed value, applications that validate hosts using naive prefix or suffix checks can be bypassed.

For example, a check such as req.host.start_with?("myapp.com") can be bypassed with Host: [email protected], and a check such as req.host.end_with?("myapp.com") can be bypassed with Host: evil.com/myapp.com.

This can lead to host header poisoning in applications that use req.host, req.url, or req.base_url for link generation, redirects, or origin validation.

Details

Rack::Request parses the authority component using logic equivalent to:

AUTHORITY = /
  \A
  (?<host>
    \[(?<address>#{ipv6})\]
    |
    (?<address>[[[:graph:]&&[^\[\]]]]*?)
  )
  (:(?<port>\d+))?
  \z
/x

The character class used for non-IPv6 hosts accepts nearly all printable characters except [ and ]. This includes reserved URI delimiters such as @, /, ?, and #, which are not valid hostname characters under RFC 3986 host syntax.

As a result, values such as the following are accepted and returned through req.host:

[email protected]
evil.com/myapp.com
evil.com#myapp.com

Applications that attempt to allowlist hosts using string prefix or suffix checks may therefore treat attacker-controlled hosts as trusted. For example:

req.host.start_with?("myapp.com")

accepts:

[email protected]

and:

req.host.end_with?("myapp.com")

accepts:

evil.com/myapp.com

When those values are later used to build absolute URLs or enforce origin restrictions, the application may produce attacker-controlled results.

Mitigation

• Update to a patched version of Rack that rejects invalid authority characters in Host.
• Enforce strict Host header validation at the reverse proxy or load balancer.
• Do not rely on prefix or suffix string checks such as start_with? or end_with? for host allowlisting.
• Use exact host allowlists, or exact subdomain boundary checks, after validating that the host is syntactically valid.

Applications that rely on req.host, req.url, or req.base_url may be affected if they perform naive host validation or assume Rack only returns RFC-valid hostnames.

In affected deployments, an attacker may be able to bypass host allowlists and poison generated links, redirects, or origin-dependent security decisions. This can enable attacks such as password reset link poisoning or other host header injection issues.

The practical impact depends on application behavior. If the application or reverse proxy already enforces strict host validation, exploitability may be reduced or eliminated.

CVE-2026-34835 has a CVSS score of 4.8 (Medium). 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 (3.1.21, 3.2.6); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.

Kodem intelligence

1. What is CVE-2026-34835? CVE-2026-34835 is a medium-severity security vulnerability in rack (rubygems), affecting versions >= 3.0.0.beta1, < 3.1.21. It is fixed in 3.1.21, 3.2.6.
2. How severe is CVE-2026-34835? CVE-2026-34835 has a CVSS score of 4.8 (Medium). 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.
3. Which versions of rack are affected by CVE-2026-34835? rack (rubygems) versions >= 3.0.0.beta1, < 3.1.21 is affected.
4. Is there a fix for CVE-2026-34835? Yes. CVE-2026-34835 is fixed in 3.1.21, 3.2.6. Upgrade to this version or later.
5. Is CVE-2026-34835 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2026-34835 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
6. What actually determines whether CVE-2026-34835 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.
7. How do I fix CVE-2026-34835?
   • Upgrade rack to 3.1.21 or later
   • Upgrade rack to 3.2.6 or later