CVE-2025-59024
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedCrafted delegations or IP fragments can poison cached delegations in Recursor.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · moderate confidenceThis is a cache poisoning vulnerability in PowerDNS Recursor where an attacker can inject malicious DNS delegation records into the recursor's cache using specially crafted delegation responses or fragmented IP packets. This allows redirecting subsequent DNS queries for affected domains to attacker-controlled nameservers.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data>= 5.1.0, < 5.1.8>= 5.2.0, < 5.2.6>= 5.3.0, < 5.3.1CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- High
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- Low
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:L
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check PowerDNS Recursor versionRun 'rec_control version' or 'recursor --version' to retrieve the installed version numberAffected if Version is 5.1.0-5.1.7, 5.2.0-5.2.5, or 5.3.0
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Verify recursor service is activeRun 'systemctl status pdns-recursor' or check if the recursor process is runningAffected if The recursor service is running and processing DNS queries
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Confirm cache functionality is enabledCheck the configuration file (typically /etc/pdns-recursor/recursor.conf) for 'cache-ttl' or 'negcache-ttl' settings, or verify the recursor responds to DNS queriesAffected if DNS caching is enabled (default behavior)
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Check for DNSSEC validation statusReview recursor.conf for 'dnssec' setting or run 'rec_control get dnssec'Affected if DNSSEC validation is disabled (mitigation is not in place)
If the installed PowerDNS Recursor version falls within 5.1.0-5.1.7, 5.2.0-5.2.5, or 5.3.0 and the recursor is actively running with caching enabled, the environment is vulnerable to cache poisoning via CVE-2025-59024.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
dbcve · scoped5.1.85.2.65.3.1
Upgrade PowerDNS Recursor to the patched version as specified in the vendor advisory. Additionally, enable DNSSEC validation and implement response rate limiting to reduce the attack surface for cache poisoning attempts.
5.3.1 (or 5.2.6/5.1.8 for respective branches)
- Identify the currently installed PowerDNS Recursor version using 'recursor --version' or equivalent
- Back up your Recursor configuration files (recursor.conf) and any existing cache data
- Upgrade to the fixed version appropriate for your branch: 5.1.8 if on 5.1.x, 5.2.6 if on 5.2.x, or 5.3.1 if on 5.3.x
- Install the upgraded package using your system's package manager (e.g., apt-get, yum, or from PowerDNS repositories)
- Verify the new version is installed: recursor --version
- Restart the Recursor service to load the patched version (e.g., 'systemctl restart pdns-recursor')
- Monitor the Recursor logs for any errors or unusual activity
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,328.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2025-59024 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2025-59024 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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