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No exploitation reportedFix available

CVE-2022-30698

No exploitation reported by the sources we read.

  • Published2022-08-01
  • WeaknessCWE-613

Am I affected?

With a domain, we read the version its public headers and pages expose. A distribution build can carry the fix under an older number.

Description

NLnet Labs Unbound, up to and including version 1.16.1 is vulnerable to a novel type of the "ghost domain names" attack. The vulnerability works by targeting an Unbound instance. Unbound is queried for a subdomain of a rogue domain name. The rogue nameserver returns delegation information for the subdomain that updates Unbound's delegation cache. This action can be repeated before expiry of the delegation information by querying Unbound for a second level subdomain which the rogue nameserver provides new delegation information. Since Unbound is a child-centric resolver, the ever-updating child delegation information can keep a rogue domain name resolvable long after revocation. From version 1.16.2 on, Unbound checks the validity of parent delegation records before using cached delegation information.

Timeline

dates in UTC
  1. 2022-08-0115:15CVE publishedNVD

Observed activity

isMalicious corpus · updated 2026-10-23 21:37 UTC
Indicators tagged with this CVE, per day0 indicators over 7 days
Block these indicators
  • Firewall list (EDL, text): https://api.ismalicious.com/edl/cve/CVE-2022-30698?format=txt
  • CSV export: https://api.ismalicious.com/edl/cve/CVE-2022-30698?format=csv
  • TAXII collection of exploited CVEs
  • The EDL and CSV take an API key on the Pro plan.

Versions per branch

NVD
Fedoraproject fedora
BranchAffectedFixed in
35.x= 35no fix published
36.x= 36no fix published
Nlnetlabs unbound
BranchAffectedFixed in
1.16< 1.16.21.16.2

as publishedRanges as NVD and OSV publish them; a distribution’s build can be fixed under an older number.

Distribution builds and vendor advisories

Packages from OSV.dev and products from the vendors' CSAF advisories.

version not verifiedVersions not verified: read as OSV.dev and the vendors publish them, not checked against each vendor's release list.

Packages

  • unboundAlmaLinux:9all versions · fixed in 1.16.2-2.el9and 3 other packages
  • unboundAlmaLinux:8all versions · fixed in 1.16.2-2.el8and 3 other packages

Full record on NVD

Fix

Advisories and patches

Detection

Nuclei template
none so far
ProjectDiscovery
Exploit-DB
no entry
Exploit-DB
Proof-of-concept repositories
none listed
PoC-in-GitHub

Sources

  • NVDCVSS 3.16.5read 2026-10-23
  • NVDweakness (CWE)CWE-613read 2026-10-23
  • FIRST EPSSEPSS score1.2 %2026-10-23
  • OSVaffected packages—

Technical details

CVSS v3 Vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
Published
2022-08-01
Last Modified
2026-06-17
NVD status
Modified

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2022-30698?

NLnet Labs Unbound, up to and including version 1.16.1 is vulnerable to a novel type of the "ghost domain names" attack. The vulnerability works by targeting an Unbound instance. Unbound is queried for a subdomain of a rogue domain name. The rogue nameserver returns delegation information for the subdomain that updates Unbound's delegation cache. This action can be repeated before expiry of the delegation information by querying Unbound for a second level subdomain which the rogue nameserver provides new delegation information. Since Unbound is a child-centric resolver, the ever-updating child delegation information can keep a rogue domain name resolvable long after revocation. From version 1.16.2 on, Unbound checks the validity of parent delegation records before using cached delegation information.

Is CVE-2022-30698 actively exploited?

Active exploitation of CVE-2022-30698 has not been confirmed. Its EPSS score was 1.2% on 2026-10-23, the estimated probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What is the CVSS score for CVE-2022-30698?

CVE-2022-30698 has a CVSS v3 base score of 6.5 (MEDIUM severity), with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N.

Running unbound? Hear about its next vulnerability

Surveillance reads the versions in your stack — a domain, a lockfile or a list — checks each CVE against the ranges its sources publish, and alerts you when one you run is exploited or enters CISA KEV. A version it cannot read stays « version not verified ».

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