HTTP Response Splitting via Non-VCHAR Bytes in cow_http_struct_hd:escape_string/2
CVE-2026-43966 is fixed in erlang-cowboy on 1 platform by DEBIAN-CVE-2026-43966 (version 2.16.1+dfsg-1), released June 8, 2026. It is not reported as exploited. Patch Radar priority: Routine.
Improper Neutralization of CRLF Sequences in HTTP Headers ('HTTP Request/Response Splitting') vulnerability in ninenines cowlib allows HTTP response splitting via non-VCHAR bytes in structured-fields string values. cow_http_struct_hd:escape_string/2 in cowlib only escapes \ and ", passing all other bytes through verbatim. This creates an encoder/decoder asymmetry: the matching parser accepts only printable ASCII (0x20–0x7E, excluding " and \), but the encoder emits any byte including CR and LF. An application that builds a structured HTTP header via cow_http_struct_hd:item/1 (or a higher-level wrapper such as cow_http_hd:wt_protocol/1) from attacker-controlled input can have \r\n injected into the serialized header value. Once on the wire, the injected CRLF terminates the current header and any following bytes are interpreted as a new header, enabling HTTP response splitting. This issue affects cowlib: from 2.9.0 onward.
Where it's fixed
| Product | Fixed in | Fix | Released |
|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | |||
| erlang-cowboy · Debian 14 | 2.16.1+dfsg-1 | DEBIAN-CVE-2026-43966 | Jun 8, 2026 |
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