# CVE-2026-54500: ruby-oj: Oj (Optimized JSON) is a JSON parser and Object marshaller packaged as a Ruby gem

CVE-2026-54500 is fixed in ruby-oj on 1 platform, first by DEBIAN-CVE-2026-54500, released July 3, 2026. It is not reported as exploited. Patch Radar priority: Routine.

- Web page: https://patchblox.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-54500
- Priority: Routine
- CVSS: 5.3 (medium)
- EPSS: 0.0020
- CISA KEV: not listed
- Exploited (vendor report): no
- Publicly disclosed: no
- Published: Jul 1, 2026

## Description

Oj (Optimized JSON) is a JSON parser and Object marshaller packaged as a Ruby gem. In versions prior to 3.17.3, Oj.load in :object mode reads uninitialized stack memory (and, for long keys, reads out of bounds) when parsing a JSON object whose key is 254 bytes or longer. The interned bytes can surface to the caller, disclosing process stack memory. In ext/oj/intern.c, form_attr() handles the long-key path by allocating a heap buffer, `b`, populating it with the attribute name, and then freeing it — but it passed the uninitialized stack buffer buf (not b) to rb_intern3(). rb_intern3 therefore reads len + 1 bytes of uninitialized stack memory. When the key length is >= 256, it also reads out of bounds past the 256-byte buf. The resulting bytes are interned and can reach the caller via the produced Symbol or via the EncodingError message raised on invalid UTF-8, leaking process stack contents. This issue has been fixed in version 3.17.3.

## Where it's fixed

| Platform | Product | Fixed in | Fix | Released |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | ruby-oj Debian 12.15 (bookworm) | 3.14.2-1+deb12u1 | [DEBIAN-CVE-2026-54500](https://patchblox.com/security/data/fix/linux/debian-cve-2026-54500.md) | Jul 3, 2026 |
| Linux | ruby-oj Debian 13.5 (trixie) | 3.16.3-1+deb13u1 | [DEBIAN-CVE-2026-54500](https://patchblox.com/security/data/fix/linux/debian-cve-2026-54500.md) | Jul 3, 2026 |
| Linux | ruby-oj Debian 14 | 3.17.3-1 | [DEBIAN-CVE-2026-54500](https://patchblox.com/security/data/fix/linux/debian-cve-2026-54500.md) | Jul 3, 2026 |

---

Data as of 2026-11-08T00:53:09Z UTC. Source: Patchblox Patch Radar (https://patchblox.com/security/patch-radar). Patchblox finds out-of-date software on Windows, macOS and Linux and updates it through release rings: https://patchblox.com/demo

Free to use with attribution: show "Data: Patchblox Patch Radar" with a link to https://patchblox.com/security/patch-radar. Terms, including what needs a written agreement: https://patchblox.com/security/patch-radar/use-the-data

Product names, logos and trademarks shown on Patch Radar belong to their respective owners. They are used only to identify the software each security fix applies to and to help readers find their platform. Their use does not imply any affiliation with, or endorsement by, those owners, and Patchblox is not affiliated with any of them.