IStaX: Insufficient Entropy
CVE-2026-2336 is a high-severity insufficient entropy vulnerability in IStaX from Microchip, with a CVSS 3.1 base score of 8.8 out of 10. It can be exploited remotely over the network by an attacker with a low-privileged account, without any action from a user. The record lists version 2026.03 as the first without the flaw, so updating IStaX to that release or later removes the exposure. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.24% chance of exploitation within 30 days, which is low compared with other CVEs.
High severity with no evidence of exploitation so far.
What to do
- Update IStaX to 2026.03 or a later version.
Affected products and versions
Version data comes from the organisation that assigned the CVE. Confirm against the vendor advisory before deciding you are unaffected.
How the severity score breaks down
- Attack vector
- NetworkCan be exploited remotely over a network, including the internet.
- Attack complexity
- LowNo special conditions are needed; the attack works reliably.
- Privileges required
- LowA basic user account is enough.
- User interaction
- NoneNo action by a victim is required.
- Scope
- UnchangedImpact stays within the vulnerable component.
- Confidentiality
- HighAll data handled by the component can be read.
- Integrity
- HighData or code can be modified at will.
- Availability
- HighThe component can be taken down completely.
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H. Scored by NVD.
| Scoring system | Score | Severity | Scored by |
|---|---|---|---|
| CVSS 4.0 | 8.7 | High | CNA |
| CVSS 3.1 | 8.8 | High | NVD |
Official description
A privilege escalation vulnerability in Microchip IStaX allows an authenticated low-privileged user to recover a shared per-device cookie secret from their own webstax_auth session cookie and forge a new cookie with administrative privileges.This issue affects IStaX before 2026.03.
Source: the CVE record as published by its numbering authority, via NVD and CVE.org.
The underlying weakness: Insufficient Entropy
The product uses an algorithm or scheme that produces insufficient entropy, leaving patterns or clusters of values that are more likely to occur than others.
How developers prevent this class of flaw
- Determine the necessary entropy to adequately provide for randomness and predictability. This can be achieved by increasing the number of bits of objects such as keys and seeds.
Timeline
- CVE record published.
- CISA published its SSVC assessment (exploitation: none, automatable: no, technical impact: total).
- Record last changed materially (score, affected products, status or references).
Recent Insufficient Entropy vulnerabilities
- 9.8 Critical severity
- 8.8 High severity
- 7.5 High severity
- 8.8 High severity
- 9.8 Critical severity
- 7.1 High severity
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