CVE-2024-29186 | Slow String Operations via MultiPart Requests in Event-Driven Functions

Exp

Bref is an open-source project that helps users go serverless on Amazon Web Services with PHP. When Bref prior to version 2.1.17 is used with the Event-Driven Function runtime and the handler is a `RequestHandlerInterface`, then the Lambda event is converted to a PSR7 object. During the conversion process, if the request is a MultiPart, each part is parsed. In the parsing process, the `Content-Type` header of each part is read using the `Riverline/multipart-parser` library. The library, in the `StreamedPart::parseHeaderContent` function, performs slow multi-byte string operations on the header value. Precisely, the `mb_convert_encoding` function is used with the first (`$string`) and third (`$from_encoding`) parameters read from the header value. An attacker could send specifically crafted requests which would force the server into performing long operations with a consequent long billed duration. The attack has the following requirements and limitations: The Lambda should use the Event-Driven Function runtime and the `RequestHandlerInterface` handler and should implement at least an endpoint accepting POST requests; the attacker can send requests up to 6MB long (this is enough to cause a billed duration between 400ms and 500ms with the default 1024MB RAM Lambda image of Bref); and if the Lambda uses a PHP runtime <= php-82, the impact is higher as the billed duration in the default 1024MB RAM Lambda image of Bref could be brought to more than 900ms for each request. Notice that the vulnerability applies only to headers read from the request body as the request header has a limitation which allows a total maximum size of ~10KB. Version 2.1.17 contains a fix for this issue.

Published: 2024-03-22 Last update: 2025-12-05 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]

Conclusion & alert: CVE-2024-29186 is rated Exploit Available (53.2/100): CVSS Medium severity, with low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.67%). Core evidence: 1 public exploit reference(s) are indexed (Exploit-DB). Mandatory action: Public exploits are available—assess exposure, apply mitigations, and prioritize patching.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Public exploit references (Exploit-DB) for CVE-2024-29186

EDB-ID Source Kind Published Link
nvd_ref exploit_tag Exploit-DB ↗

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2024-29186

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2026-06-15 0.09% 0.67% +0.58%
2 2025-12-18 0.05% 0.09% +0.04%
3 2025-11-21 0.05%

Full EPSS history (8 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2024-29186

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
5.3 3.1 MEDIUM
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:N)
Doesn’t really leak secrets in a meaningful way.
Integrity (I:N)
Data isn’t meaningfully altered or forged.
Availability (A:L)
Might cause slowdowns, glitches, or partial disruption—not a full brick.
3.9 1.4 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2024-29186

GitHub Security Advisory for CVE-2024-29186

GHSA-j4hq-f63x-f39r · Severity: medium · Ecosystem: composer — Slow String Operations via MultiPart Requests in Event-Driven Functions

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2024-29186

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
mnapoli bref < 2.1.17 cpe:2.3:a:mnapoli:bref:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2024-29186

cvelogic Threat Intelligence