Traefik is an HTTP reverse proxy and load balancer. Prior to versions 2.11.38 and 3.6.9, there is a potential vulnerability in Traefik managing TLS handshake on TCP routers. When Traefik processes a TLS connection on a TCP router, the read deadline used to bound protocol sniffing is cleared before the TLS handshake is completed. When a TLS handshake read error occurs, the code attempts a second handshake with different connection parameters, silently ignoring the initial error. A remote unauthenticated client can exploit this by sending an incomplete TLS record and stopping further data transmission, causing the TLS handshake to stall indefinitely and holding connections open. By opening many such stalled connections in parallel, an attacker can exhaust file descriptors and goroutines, degrading availability of all services on the affected entrypoint. This issue has been patched in versions 2.11.38 and 3.6.9.
Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
CVE-2026-26999 is an availability flaw in Traefik TCP routing. An unauthenticated remote client can hold TLS handshakes open, consuming connection resources until services behind the affected entrypoint degrade or become unavailable. The issue is patched in Traefik 2.11.38 and 3.6.9.
Executive priority
Treat this as a high-priority availability risk for public Traefik TCP/TLS services. It does not indicate data theft or code execution, but it can disrupt all services on an affected entrypoint. Patch exposed edge systems first.
Technical view
Before 2.11.38 and 3.6.9, Traefik TCP routers cleared a read deadline before TLS handshake completion. If the first handshake read failed, Traefik retried with different connection parameters and ignored the initial error. Incomplete TLS input could stall indefinitely, consuming file descriptors and goroutines. CVSS is 7.5, mapped to CWE-400 and CWE-772.
Likely exposure
Most likely exposed are Traefik deployments using TCP routers with TLS on internet-facing or untrusted entrypoints. The bundle identifies Traefik versions below 2.11.38 and below 3.6.9 as affected. Exposure for packaged distributions should be checked against vendor advisories.
Exploitation context
The source bundle supports remote, unauthenticated, low-complexity denial of service against affected TCP/TLS entrypoints. KEV is false, and the provided sources do not state active exploitation or confirmed public weaponization.
Researcher notes
The key behavior is deadline removal before TLS handshake completion plus a retry path that ignores the first read error. Validate affectedness through version and TCP/TLS router configuration, not by assuming all Traefik HTTP reverse-proxy deployments are exposed.
Mitigation direction
Upgrade Traefik 2.x deployments to 2.11.38 or later.
Upgrade Traefik 3.x deployments to 3.6.9 or later.
Apply Red Hat advisory updates where Traefik is consumed through Red Hat packages.
Prioritize externally reachable TCP routers using TLS.
Monitor vendor advisories for any additional mitigations or backports.
Validation and detection
Inventory Traefik versions across production, staging, and edge environments.
Identify TCP routers with TLS enabled on exposed entrypoints.
Confirm upgraded instances report version 2.11.38, 3.6.9, or later.
Review availability metrics for abnormal long-lived TLS connections.
Check vendor package status against Red Hat or upstream advisories.
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Potential ATT&CK relevance
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
cwe · low confidence lookup
CWE-400: Exact CWE lookup
Use the exact CWE identifier as the starting point before reviewing related ATT&CK behavior. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Use the exact CWE identifier as the starting point before reviewing related ATT&CK behavior. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
We collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.
CWE-400 · source CWE mapping
Uncontrolled Resource Consumption
Uncontrolled Resource Consumption represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.
Missing Release of Resource after Effective Lifetime
Missing Release of Resource after Effective Lifetime represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.