Transformers vulnerable to ReDoS attack through its SETTING_RE variable
A Regular Expression Denial of Service (ReDoS) vulnerability was discovered in the huggingface/transformers repository, specifically in version 4.49.0. The vulnerability is due to inefficient regular expression complexity in the SETTING_RE variable within the transformers/commands/chat.py file. The regex contains repetition groups and non-optimized quantifiers, leading to exponential backtracking when processing 'almost matching' payloads. This can degrade application performance and potentially result in a denial-of-service (DoS) when handling specially crafted input strings. The issue is fixed in version 4.51.0.
Affected software
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| Platform | Package | Vulnerable versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Python (PyPI) | transformers | >= 4.49.0, < 4.51.0 | 4.51.0 |
References
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-3262
- https://github.com/huggingface/transformers/commit/0720e206c6ba28887e4d60ef60a6a089f6c1cc76
- https://github.com/huggingface/transformers/commit/126abe3461762e5fc180e7e614391d1b4ab051ca
- https://github.com/huggingface/transformers
- https://huntr.com/bounties/ecf5ccc4-39e7-4fb3-b547-14a41d31a184
- https://pypi.org/project/transformers
- https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-489j-g2vx-39wf
- CVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L- Weakness (CWE)
CWE-1333- Platform
- Python (PyPI)
- Package
transformers- Disclosed
- 07.07.2025
- Updated
- 11.10.2026 13:19
Sources and licenses
OSV / GitHub Advisory Database - PYSEC-2026-1979 - PyPA Advisory Database; CC BY 4.0
OSV / GitHub Advisory Database - GHSA-489j-g2vx-39wf - CC BY 4.0
Vulnerability history: transformers
All published vulnerabilities of this package (Python (PyPI)), newest first. Shows whether this is a one-off slip or a package that needs watching.
- Total entries
- 32
- First → latest
- 05.2023 09.2026
- Without a fix
- 9
- Exploited in attacks
- 0
Severity breakdown
- High 18
- Medium 12
- Low 2
Disclosures per year
- 2023: 3
- 2024: 4
- 2025: 20
- 2026: 5
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Transformers vulnerable to ReDoS attack through its SETTING_RE variable this entry
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