Improper Handling of Inconsistent Special Elements Affecting bind-utils package, versions <32:9.18.50-1.amzn2023.0.3


Severity

Recommended
high

Based on Amazon Linux security rating.

Threat Intelligence

EPSS
0.21% (10th percentile)

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  • Snyk IDSNYK-AMZN2023-BINDUTILS-20247404
  • published29 Sept 2026
  • disclosed16 Sept 2026

Introduced: 16 Sep 2026

CVE-2026-78301  (opens in a new tab)
CWE-168  (opens in a new tab)

How to fix?

Upgrade Amazon-Linux:2023 bind-utils to version 32:9.18.50-1.amzn2023.0.3 or higher.
This issue was patched in ALAS2023-2026-3137.

NVD Description

Note: Versions mentioned in the description apply only to the upstream bind-utils package and not the bind-utils package as distributed by Amazon-Linux. See How to fix? for Amazon-Linux:2023 relevant fixed versions and status.

A malformed zone may contain an NS or DNAME node above its origin, which named treats as a zone cut. If an attacker inserts a malformed zone into a BIND authoritative server (e.g., via zone transfer), queries for names inside the configured zone then lose authoritative status and return an out-of-zone delegation. On a server that also provides recursion BIND can follow this locally sourced cut and cache attacker-supplied data, affecting names outside the configured zone. This situation persists as long as the malformed zone remains in the zone database. This issue affects BIND 9 versions 9.11.0 through 9.18.50, 9.20.0 through 9.20.27, 9.21.0 through 9.21.25, 9.11.3-S1 through 9.18.50-S1, and 9.20.9-S1 through 9.20.27-S1.

CVSS Base Scores

version 3.1