CVE-2026-45287 — v1.1
Fix: open-telemetry/opentelemetry-go@e72a235CVE-2026-45287 is a CWE-772 vulnerability in go.opentelemetry.io/otel/schema/v1.1. A fix is available for go.opentelemetry.io/otel/schema/v1.1 — see the affected versions and patch details below.
OpenTelemetry-Go's Schema ParseFile leaks file descriptors on each parse
Exploitation Status
Proof-of-concept exploit code exists
- CISA’s SSVC triage found public proof-of-concept exploit code for this CVE, though no confirmed active exploitation.
Exploitation and automatability from CISA’s SSVC triage for CVE-2026-45287.
EPSS Exploitation Probability
Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.
Real-World Exposure
go.opentelemetry.io/otel/schema/v1.1🐹go.opentelemetry.io/otel/schema/v1.0🐹go.opentelemetry.io/otel/schemaReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects Go packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
Summary
go.opentelemetry.io/otel/schema/v1.0 and go.opentelemetry.io/otel/schema/v1.1 leaks one file descriptor on each successful ParseFile call. ParseFile opens the schema file and passes it to Parse without closing it; repeated parsing in a long-running process can exhaust the process file descriptor limit and cause denial of service. The severity is low because exploitation depends on a consuming application exposing repeated schema parsing to an attacker-controlled path.
Introduced in commit: e72a235
Details
In schema/v1.0/parser.go:41-47, ParseFile opens the requested schema path with os.Open and then returns Parse(file) without a defer file.Close() or other close path:
file, err := os.Open(schemaFilePath)
if err != nil {
return nil, err
}
return Parse(file)
The validation evidence also identifies schema/v1.0/parser.go:50-73: Parse accepts an io.Reader, decodes from it, and does not close it. Ownership of the opened file is therefore not transferred to Parse, leaving the descriptor open until the Go runtime eventually finalizes the file object. With repeated ParseFile calls, descriptors can accumulate until the process receives EMFILE / "too many open files".
PoC
The local artifact validation-artifact.zip contains:
leak_poc.go: PoC source that repeatedly callsschema.ParseFile("schema/v1.0/testdata/valid-example.yaml")and prints/proc/self/fdcounts.LEAK_POC_README.txt: reproduction notes.leak_poc_run.log: captured attempted run; the local offline environment failed before execution because Go module download fromproxy.golang.orgwas forbidden.
Reproduce from the root of a checkout of pellared/opentelemetry-go at commit e72a235 with Go module dependencies already available:
/bin/sh -c 'ulimit -n 256; GOGC=off go run leak_poc.go'
Configuration:
- File descriptor soft limit:
256 - Garbage collection: disabled with
GOGC=offso leaked descriptors are not reclaimed during the loop - Schema file:
schema/v1.0/testdata/valid-example.yaml
Expected output is increasing descriptor counts followed by an EMFILE failure, for example:
iter 0 fds 7
iter 50 fds 57
iter 100 fds 107
...
panic: iteration 248: open schema/v1.0/testdata/valid-example.yaml: too many open files
The exact initial descriptor count and failing iteration can vary by OS and process state.
Impact
This is a file descriptor resource leak leading to availability loss. Applications that call schema.ParseFile repeatedly, especially through a runtime reload or request-controlled path, can exhaust their process file descriptor table and fail subsequent file, socket, or other descriptor operations. Impact is limited to denial of service of the consuming process; the evidence does not show confidentiality or integrity impact.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐹Go | go.opentelemetry.io/otel/schema/v1.1 | all versions | 0.0.17go get go.opentelemetry.io/otel/schema/v1.1@v0.0.17 |
| 🐹Go | go.opentelemetry.io/otel/schema/v1.0 | all versions | 0.0.17go get go.opentelemetry.io/otel/schema/v1.0@v0.0.17 |
| 🐹Go | go.opentelemetry.io/otel/schema | all versions | 0.0.17go get go.opentelemetry.io/otel/schema@v0.0.17 |
Affected Products
telemetry schema filesopentelemetryDetection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for go.opentelemetry.io/otel/schema/v1.1, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update go.opentelemetry.io/otel/schema/v1.1 to 0.0.17 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2026-45287 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
Cap what an attacker can consume: apply request size, rate and timeout limits in front of the affected component, and run it with memory and CPU limits so exhaustion degrades one worker rather than the whole service.
Fixing This On Your OS
If you run this on a Linux distribution, patch through your package manager against the distro's own security advisory below — it tracks the exact backported fix for your release, which can ship on a different timeline (and sometimes a different severity) than the upstream project.
OpenTelemetry-Go schema parsing is vulnerable to file descriptor leak in ParseFile for otel/schema v1.0 and v1.1. An attacker who can cause repeated schema parsing against an attacker-influenced file path in a long-running Go process may exhaust file descriptors and crash or stall the service. Exposure is limited to…
Mitigation for this issue is either not available or the currently available options do not meet the Red Hat Product Security criteria comprising ease of use and deployment, applicability to widespread installation base, or stability.Source: Red Hat security advisory for CVE-2026-45287 (CC BY 4.0)
| Product | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Hardened Images | podman-main-5.8.2-1.1.hum1 | RHSA-2026:15859 |
| Red Hat Hardened Images | trivy-main-0.69.3-1.2.hum1 | RHSA-2026:15862 |
| Red Hat Hardened Images | skopeo-main-1.23.0-1.hum1 | RHSA-2026:21399 |
| Red Hat Hardened Images | buildah-main-1.44.0-1.hum1 | RHSA-2026:23263 |
| Red Hat Hardened Images | hugo-main-0.162.1-1.hum1 | RHSA-2026:24577 |
| Red Hat Hardened Images | syft-main-1.45.1-0.1.hum1 | RHSA-2026:25137 |
| Red Hat Hardened Images | cosign-main-3.1.1-0.1.hum1 | RHSA-2026:25138 |
| Red Hat Hardened Images | caddy-main-2.11.4-0.1.hum1 | RHSA-2026:25238 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2026-45287 in your dependencies?
Find it across Go, including transitive dependencies.