# CVE-2026-54465: faye websocket-driver memory exhaustion in HTTP header parser

Source: https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-54465-faye-websocket-driver-memory-exhaustion-in-http-header-parser  
Publisher: Junglewise Threat Intelligence, https://junglewise.ai/threats  
Published: 2026-07-17. Updated: 2026-07-17  
License: CC BY 4.0 with a link back

CVE-2026-54465 · Severity: medium · CVSS 4 · Published 2026-07-17

A vulnerability in the websocket-driver library can allow an attacker to crash a server or client application by exhausting its available memory. This occurs when the library is used to handle WebSocket connections and receives a specially crafted request with an endless list of headers. An exploit could lead to a denial-of-service, making the affected application or service unavailable to legitimate users.

Technologies: [websocket-driver (RubyGems)](https://junglewise.ai/threats/technologies/websocket-driver). Vendors: [RubyGems](https://junglewise.ai/threats/vendors/rubygems).

## Quick answers

**Is CVE-2026-54465 exploited in the wild?** No. Junglewise Threat Intelligence has no report of CVE-2026-54465 being exploited in the wild.

**How severe is CVE-2026-54465?** Medium severity, with a CVSS score of 4, published 17 July 2026.

**Which products and versions are affected?** websocket-driver (RubyGems) < 0.8.1, ECOSYSTEM:introduced=0,fixed=0.8.1.

**Is there a fix for CVE-2026-54465?** Yes. websocket-driver (RubyGems): upgrade to 0.8.1 or later. Junglewise finds every place you run it, drafts the upgrade and applies it once you approve.

**How is CVE-2026-54465 attacked?** It is attacked over the network, in a software library.

**Am I affected by CVE-2026-54465?** Check whether you run websocket-driver (RubyGems) at an affected version. Junglewise does that check for you around the clock: connect your code, cloud and domains, and it matches new vulnerabilities like this one against what you actually run and tells you when one reaches you.

## How to fix

- websocket-driver (RubyGems): upgrade to 0.8.1 or later

  ```sh
  bundle update websocket-driver
  ```


## Technical details

A resource exhaustion vulnerability (CWE-770) exists in websocket-driver prior to version 0.8.1. When the library is used to implement a WebSocket server via WebSocket::Driver.server() or as a client complement, the HTTP header parser fails to enforce limits on the number or size of incoming headers. A remote attacker can exploit this by sending a continuous stream of HTTP headers, causing the process to allocate memory indefinitely until it crashes or becomes unresponsive. The issue is resolved in version 0.8.1 by implementing a 32 KB limit on the total size of the HTTP request/reponse line and headers.

## Affected products

- faye websocket-driver-ruby < 0.8.1

## Identifiers

- CVE-2026-54465
- GHSA-8j3g-f24p-4mpw

## Timeline

- 2026-06-04: advisory: GitHub Security Advisory published by maintainer
- 2026-07-17: disclosed: CVE-2026-54465 published to NVD
- 2026-07-17: patched: Version 0.8.1 released with fix

## References

- [https://github.com/faye/websocket-driver-ruby/commit/17b569f232896e71d458404ccf4854f80e987710](https://github.com/faye/websocket-driver-ruby/commit/17b569f232896e71d458404ccf4854f80e987710)
- [https://github.com/faye/websocket-driver-ruby/security/advisories/GHSA-8j3g-f24p-4mpw](https://github.com/faye/websocket-driver-ruby/security/advisories/GHSA-8j3g-f24p-4mpw)

## Related threats

- [faye websocket-driver-ruby denial of service via malformed Host header](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-61666-faye-websocket-driver-ruby-denial-of-service-via-malformed-host)
- [Faye websocket-driver-ruby resource limit bypass in permessage-deflate](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-54464-faye-websocket-driver-ruby-resource-limit-bypass-in-permessage)
- [faye websocket-driver-ruby memory exhaustion in draft protocol handler](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-54463-faye-websocket-driver-ruby-memory-exhaustion-in-draft-protocol)