CVE-2023-4421

The NSS code used for checking PKCS#1 v1.5 was leaking information useful in mounting Bleichenbacher-like attacks

published December 12, 2023

CVSS
—
EPSS
1%
Percentile
54.9
In the wild
Unconfirmed
What it is

The NSS code used for checking PKCS#1 v1.5 was leaking information useful in mounting Bleichenbacher-like attacks. Both the overall correctness of the padding as well as the length of the encrypted message was leaking through timing side-channel. By sending large number of attacker-selected ciphertexts, the attacker would be able to decrypt a previously intercepted PKCS#1 v1.5 ciphertext (for example, to decrypt a TLS session that used RSA key exchange), or forge a signature using the victim's key. The issue was fixed by implementing the implicit rejection algorithm, in which the NSS returns a deterministic random message in case invalid padding is detected, as proposed in the Marvin Attack paper. This vulnerability affects NSS < 3.61.

The record
Technical detail
CVSS
Not scored
CVSS v4.0
Not supplied
EPSS
0.00762 · 54.9th percentile
Published
2023-12-12T17:02Z
EPSS history
Timeline
  • 12 DEC 17:02Z
    The NSS code used for checking PKCS#1 v1.5 was leaking information useful in mounting Bleichenbacher-like attacks
    cvelistv5