CVE-2023-6237 Affecting openssl package, versions <3.1.4-r4


Severity

Recommended
low

Based on default assessment until relevant scores are available.

Threat Intelligence

EPSS
0.05% (18th percentile)

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  • Snyk IDSNYK-ALPINE321-OPENSSL-8485314
  • published6 Dec 2024
  • disclosed25 Apr 2024

Introduced: 25 Apr 2024

CVE-2023-6237  (opens in a new tab)

How to fix?

Upgrade Alpine:3.21 openssl to version 3.1.4-r4 or higher.

NVD Description

Note: Versions mentioned in the description apply only to the upstream openssl package and not the openssl package as distributed by Alpine. See How to fix? for Alpine:3.21 relevant fixed versions and status.

Issue summary: Checking excessively long invalid RSA public keys may take a long time.

Impact summary: Applications that use the function EVP_PKEY_public_check() to check RSA public keys may experience long delays. Where the key that is being checked has been obtained from an untrusted source this may lead to a Denial of Service.

When function EVP_PKEY_public_check() is called on RSA public keys, a computation is done to confirm that the RSA modulus, n, is composite. For valid RSA keys, n is a product of two or more large primes and this computation completes quickly. However, if n is an overly large prime, then this computation would take a long time.

An application that calls EVP_PKEY_public_check() and supplies an RSA key obtained from an untrusted source could be vulnerable to a Denial of Service attack.

The function EVP_PKEY_public_check() is not called from other OpenSSL functions however it is called from the OpenSSL pkey command line application. For that reason that application is also vulnerable if used with the '-pubin' and '-check' options on untrusted data.

The OpenSSL SSL/TLS implementation is not affected by this issue.

The OpenSSL 3.0 and 3.1 FIPS providers are affected by this issue.

CVSS Scores

version 3.1