wolfSSL: Reusing a Nonce, Key Pair in Encryption
CVE-2026-5446 is a high-severity reusing a nonce, key pair in encryption vulnerability in wolfSSL, with a CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.1 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 5.9.1 as the first without the flaw, so updating wolfSSL to that release or later removes the exposure. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.34% 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 wolfSSL to 5.9.1 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
- LowLimited modification of data is possible.
- Availability
- NoneAvailability is not affected.
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:L/A:N. Scored by NVD.
| Scoring system | Score | Severity | Scored by |
|---|---|---|---|
| CVSS 4.0 | 6.0 | Medium | CNA (wolfssl.com) |
| CVSS 3.1 | 7.1 | High | NVD |
Official description
In wolfSSL, ARIA-GCM cipher suites used in TLS 1.2 and DTLS 1.2 reuse an identical 12-byte GCM nonce for every application-data record. Because wc_AriaEncrypt is stateless and passes the caller-supplied IV verbatim to the MagicCrypto SDK with no internal counter, and because the explicit IV is zero-initialized at session setup and never incremented in non-FIPS builds. This vulnerability affects wolfSSL builds configured with --enable-aria and the proprietary MagicCrypto SDK (a non-default, opt-in configuration required for Korean regulatory deployments). AES-GCM is not affected because wc_AesGcmEncrypt_ex maintains an internal invocation counter independently of the call-site guard.
Source: the CVE record as published by its numbering authority, via NVD and CVE.org.
The underlying weakness: Reusing a Nonce, Key Pair in Encryption
Nonces should be used for the present occasion and only once.
How developers prevent this class of flaw
- Use techniques such as requiring incrementing, time based and/or challenge response to assure uniqueness of nonces.
More Reusing a Nonce, Key Pair in Encryption vulnerabilities (CWE-323)
Timeline
- CVE record published.
- CISA published its SSVC assessment (exploitation: none, automatable: no, technical impact: partial).
- Record last changed materially (score, affected products, status or references).
References
Patches and release notes
- github.com/wolfSSL/wolfssl/pull/10111Issue Tracking
Other vulnerabilities in wolfSSL
- 8.2 High severity
- 8.3 High severity
- 9.1 Critical severity
- 7.5 High severity
- 7.5 High severity
- 7.5 High severity
Recent Reusing a Nonce, Key Pair in Encryption vulnerabilities
- 8.1 High severity
- 7.3 High severity
- 7.5 High severity
- 9.8 Critical severity
- 9.1 Critical severity
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