**Cloudflare Blames Friday Outage on Botched Fix for React2Shell Vulnerability**

In a shocking turn of events, Cloudflare's technology chief, Dane Knecht, revealed that the company's widespread outage on Friday was caused by a botched attempt to patch the recently disclosed React2Shell vulnerability. The outage, which affected approximately 28% of HTTP traffic served by Cloudflare and left websites around the world in darkness, was not the result of a cyber attack or malicious activity, but rather an error in the company's efforts to address the security flaw.

The React2Shell vulnerability, also known as CVE-2025-55182, is a high-severity issue that allows remote attackers to execute malicious code on vulnerable instances. It was publicly disclosed by the React team just hours before Cloudflare's outage, and subsequent reports from threat intel groups have confirmed that attackers are actively exploiting this vulnerability.

Cloudflare's decision to take down its network to patch the vulnerability highlights the complexity of addressing security issues in open-source code. While well-intentioned, the company's efforts ultimately led to unintended consequences, emphasizing the need for more effective communication and collaboration within the security community.

**The Security Community Reacts**

The reaction from the security community has been one of caution and concern. "Maybe we need to trust the security community and security providers more to act quickly and provide mitigations before threat actors are ready to exploit at a global scale," said Radware VP of Threat Intel, Pascal Geenens. "It's a race, but more security providers would be able to win if they had access to complete and accurate information."

Geenens' comments reflect the growing concern that the current disclosure process may not be adequate for addressing critical vulnerabilities like React2Shell. The speed at which attackers can develop exploits based on limited information is alarming, particularly when government-backed cyber operatives are involved.

**Proofs-of-Concept and Exploitation Attempts**

The React2Shell vulnerability has been exploited in the wild, with multiple proof-of-concepts (POCs) circulating online. While some POCs have been confirmed to work, others have been deemed invalid by researchers, including Lachlan Davidson, who discovered the flaw.

Davidson shared his own POCs hours after the bug's disclosure, but warned that fake PoCs are spreading rapidly, potentially giving attackers an advantage. "This shows that this vulnerability is not just theoretical but actually highly risky, and should be patched immediately on your internet-facing services," said Nir Zadok and Moshe Siman Tov Bustan of Ox Security.

**A Call for Change in Disclosure Strategy**

The React2Shell vulnerability has highlighted the need for a more effective disclosure strategy. Geenens' comments suggest that sharing details about exploits may be necessary to give security providers and organizations a fighting chance against attackers.

"Not sharing the details of the exploit might give them the edge they need to get ahead of some organizations' protections," he said. "The limited information led to inaccurate assumptions and invalid information circulating in the community, potentially affecting the mitigations some organizations have put in place and giving them a false sense of security."

As the security community continues to grapple with the React2Shell vulnerability, it is clear that change is needed to ensure that vulnerabilities are addressed effectively. The story of Cloudflare's outage serves as a stark reminder of the complexities involved in addressing security issues in open-source code.

**What We Know About CVE-2025-55182**

The CVE-2025-55182 vulnerability, also known as React2Shell, is an insecure deserialization vulnerability that affects React frameworks and bundlers. It was publicly disclosed by the React team on Wednesday, and subsequent reports have confirmed that attackers are actively exploiting this flaw.

According to threat intel groups, including Amazon and Palo Alto Networks' Unit 42, the vulnerability has been exploited in various ways, including:

* Scanning for vulnerable RCE (Remote Code Execution) * Reconnaissance activity * Attempted theft of AWS configuration and credential files * Installation of downloaders to retrieve payloads from attacker command and control infrastructure

The US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has added the bug to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog, highlighting the critical nature of this issue.

**Conclusion**

The React2Shell vulnerability has exposed weaknesses in the current disclosure process and highlighted the need for more effective communication within the security community. Cloudflare's outage serves as a stark reminder of the complexities involved in addressing security issues in open-source code.

As the security community continues to grapple with this issue, it is clear that change is needed to ensure that vulnerabilities are addressed effectively. The story of React2Shell serves as a cautionary tale, emphasizing the importance of collaboration and effective communication in addressing critical vulnerabilities.