CVE-2026-54712: OpenTelemetry Java Instrumentation DoS in RMI context propagation

Executive brief

OpenTelemetry Javaagent is a tool used to monitor the performance of Java applications. A vulnerability in how it handles remote communication (RMI) allows an attacker to send specially crafted data that consumes excessive memory. This can lead to a denial-of-service condition, making the monitored application unavailable to users.

Technical details

A resource exhaustion vulnerability exists in the OpenTelemetry Javaagent's RMI (Remote Method Invocation) instrumentation. The payload reader responsible for context propagation enforces a limit on the number of context entries but fails to validate or limit the aggregate size of the strings being read from the stream. An unauthenticated remote attacker who can reach an RMI endpoint on an instrumented JVM can exploit this by sending an oversized payload. This results in excessive memory allocation during the read process, leading to a Denial of Service (DoS) via memory exhaustion. The issue is fixed in version 2.27.0.

Affected products

• OpenTelemetry opentelemetry-javaagent < 2.27.0

Timeline

• 2026-06-09: disclosed
• 2026-07-01: advisory: NVD publication
• 2026-07-29: advisory: GitHub Advisory published
• 2026-07-29: patched: Version 2.27.0 released

References

• https://api.github.com/users/decsecre583
• https://github.com/decsecre583
• https://api.github.com/users/decsecre583/gists%7B/gist_id%7D
• https://api.github.com/users/decsecre583/repos
• https://avatars.githubusercontent.com/u/186786330?v=4
• https://api.github.com/users/decsecre583/events%7B/privacy%7D