CVE-2026-63073
Untrusted Sender DN Used as Format String in CMP Response Validation
- State
- Published
- Severity
- 9.8 Critical
- Published
- Aug 25, 2026
- Updated
- Aug 31, 2026
- Reserved
- Jul 15, 2026
Description
Issue summary: OpenSSL CMP response validation passed an unexpected response sender distinguished name directly as the format string to `ERR_raise_data()`.
Impact summary: A malicious or intercepted CMP endpoint can crash a CMP client that enforces an expected sender or uses a pinned server certificate whose subject becomes the default expected sender.
CWE: CWE-134 (Use of Externally-Controlled Format String)
Description: When validating a received CMP message, ossl_cmp_msg_check_update() converts the peer-supplied sender distinguished name with X509_NAME_oneline() and passes it directly as the format argument to ERR_raise_data(). Percent characters survive the conversion, so a sender DN such as "CN=%s%n" reaches BIO_vsnprintf() as an attacker-controlled format string with no matching variadic arguments. This path is only reached when the caller configures an expected sender or pins a server certificate, which is the normal configuration for a CMP client validating server responses.
Since the attacker controls the format string but none of the variadic arguments, such specifiers as %s and %n dereference or write through unrelated stack contents and crash the client. The reliable consequence is a denial of service, when the response comes from a malicious or intercepted CMP endpoint. There is no controlled memory write, arbitrary-address read, or reliable path to remote code execution.
FIPS impact: no
No FIPS modules are affected by this issue, as the CMP protocol implementation is outside the OpenSSL FIPS module boundary.
Scores
| CVSS | Score | Vector | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3.1 | 9.8 Critical | CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H | CISA-ADP |
Weaknesses
- CWE-134 Use of Externally-Controlled Format String
Affected Products
| Product | Versions |
|---|---|
OpenSSLOpenSSL |
|
References
- OpenSSL Advisoryvendor-advisory
- 4.0.2 git commitpatch
- 3.6.4 git commitpatch
- 3.5.8 git commitpatch
- 3.4.7 git commitpatch
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