ArrowApplication · Apache
CVE-2026-25087
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 · uneditedUse After Free vulnerability in Apache Arrow C++. This issue affects Apache Arrow C++ from 15.0.0 through 23.0.0. It can be triggered when reading an Arrow IPC file (but not an IPC stream) with pre-buffering enabled, if the IPC file contains data with variadic buffers (such as Binary View and String View data). Depending on the number of variadic buffers in a record batch column and on the temporal sequence of multi-threaded IO, a write to a dangling pointer could occur. The value (a `std::shared_ptr<Buffer>` object) that is written to the dangling pointer is not under direct control of the attacker. Pre-buffering is disabled by default but can be enabled using a specific C++ API call (`RecordBatchFileReader::PreBufferMetadata`). The functionality is not exposed in language bindings (Python, Ruby, C GLib), so these bindings are not vulnerable. The most likely consequence of this issue would be random crashes or memory corruption when reading specific kinds of IPC files. If the application allows ingesting IPC files from untrusted sources, this could plausibly be exploited for denial of service. Inducing more targeted kinds of misbehavior (such as confidential data extraction from the running process) depends on memory allocation and multi-threaded IO temporal patterns that are unlikely to be easily controlled by an attacker. Advice for users of Arrow C++: 1. check whether you enable pre-buffering on the IPC file reader (using `RecordBatchFileReader::PreBufferMetadata`) 2. if so, either disable pre-buffering (which may have adverse performance consequences), or switch to Arrow 23.0.1 which is not vulnerable
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 analysisMemory is used after it has been freed, so its contents — now potentially attacker-controlled — drive the program's behaviour. With careful heap grooming this becomes code execution. The fix requires disciplined ownership of memory and often a targeted rework of the object lifecycle.
General guidance for the use after free class — the official description and references above are authoritative for this specific CVE. Want a bespoke review and a reviewed fix? Ask our team →
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
ArrowApplication
>= 15.0.0, < 23.0.1CVSS 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
- Low
- Integrity
- Low
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:H
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 · scoped23.0.1
Arrow C++ 23.0.1
- 1. Audit your codebase for calls to RecordBatchFileReader::PreBufferMetadata that enable pre-buffering on IPC file readers
- 2. If pre-buffering is enabled, either disable it as a temporary mitigation or proceed with upgrade
- 3. Download Apache Arrow C++ version 23.0.1 or later from the official releases
- 4. Rebuild your application against the upgraded Arrow C++ library
- 5. Re-deploy the rebuilt application to replace the vulnerable version
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2026-25087 — 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-2026-25087 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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