Out-of-Bounds Access After SSL_set_SSL_CTX() During a Handshake
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- Denial of service
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- None · None · High
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 1 fixed, 7 without a fix
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · CISA ADP. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat. Impact type from CWE-787 and the CVSS impact.
Summary
Issue summary: A TLS server that calls SSL_set_SSL_CTX() to switch a connection to a different SSL_CTX part way through a handshake may access memory beyond the end of an internal array if the replacement context knows about more provider signature algorithms than the context the connection was created from. Applications which never call SSL_set_SSL_CTX() are not affected. Impact summary: A remote peer may be able to cause a small out-of-bounds read, and in some circumstances a fixed-value out-of-bounds write, on the server heap. This may lead to a Denial of Service. CWE: CWE-787: Out-of-bounds Write Description: A TLS connection records how many certificate slots it has when it is created, taken from the SSL_CTX that created it: the built-in certificate types plus one slot for each provider TLS-SIGALG entry that context was aware of. That count sizes an internal array of per-slot certificate validity flags. An application may replace a connection's SSL_CTX part way through the handshake by calling SSL_set_SSL_CTX(), most commonly from a servername callback in order to serve a different virtual host. Doing so did not refresh the recorded count. A provider signature algorithm's slot index is its position in the list of whichever context resolves it, so if the replacement context is aware of more of them than the original, an algorithm offered by the peer can resolve to an index beyond the end of the array. Processing the peer's signature algorithms then reads one four byte word past the end for each such algorithm and, where the word read is zero, writes a fixed value over it. A peer offering many of them can corrupt heap metadata and abort the process. Only provider signature algorithms which occupy one of the excess slots, and which the server also has configured, have this effect. Codepoints the replacement context does not recognise are discarded without being resolved to a slot, and provider signature algorithms are usable only from TLS 1.3. The two contexts must therefore be aware of different numbers of provider signature algorithms, which requires separate library contexts, a provider loaded between the two being created, or providers which differ in what they advertise - in 4.0, for example, the default provider advertises SM2 where the FIPS provider does not. A deployment meeting the condition is also unable to negotiate the affected algorithms with legitimate clients, since the same stale count hides the corresponding certificates, so the misconfiguration is likely to be noticed. For that reason, and because the configuration is not the default, this issue has been assessed as Low severity. FIPS impact: no No FIPS modules are affected by this issue as the affected code is outside the OpenSSL FIPS module boundary.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- Yes
- Technical impact
- Partial
The decision (Track, Attend, Act) also depends on your mission and well-being impact; see CISA's SSVC guide.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OpenSSL | OpenSSL | 4.0.0 to before 4.0.3; 3.6.0 to before 3.6.5; 3.5.0 to before 3.5.9; 3.4.0 to before 3.4.8 | 4.0.3, 3.6.5, 3.5.9, 3.4.8 | Patch available | CNA |
- OpenSSL VendorOpenSSL Affected 4.0.0 to before 4.0.3; 3.6.0 to before 3.6.5; 3.5.0 to before 3.5.9; 3.4.0 to before 3.4.8 Fixed in 4.0.3, 3.6.5, 3.5.9, 3.4.8 Patch available CNA
CPE configurations NVD · 1
| CPE | Versions | Role | Vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| cpe:2.3:a:openssl:openssl:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 3.4.0 to before 3.4.8; 3.5.0 to before 3.5.9; 3.6.0 to before 3.6.5; 4.0.0 to before 4.0.3 | Vulnerable | OpenSSL |
- cpe:2.3:a:openssl:openssl:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 3.4.0 to before 3.4.8; 3.5.0 to before 3.5.9; 3.6.0 to before 3.6.5; 4.0.0 to before 4.0.3 Vulnerable ·OpenSSL
Remediation
- Fix · CNA OpenSSL (OpenSSL) Fixed in 4.0.3, 3.6.5, 3.5.9, 3.4.8
Red Hat 2 advisories
- RHSA-2026:74166 Released 2026-09-30 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat Hardened Images RPMs bug fix and enhancement update
- Red Hat Hardened Images openssl3-1:3.5.9-0.1.hum1@src, openssl3-devel-1:3.5.9-0.1.hum1@aarch64, openssl3-devel-1:3.5.9-0.1.hum1@x86_64 +4
- RHSA-2026:74162 Released 2026-09-30 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat Hardened Images RPMs bug fix and enhancement update
- Red Hat Hardened Images openssl-1:3.5.9-0.1.hum1@aarch64, openssl-1:3.5.9-0.1.hum1@src, openssl-1:3.5.9-0.1.hum1@x86_64 +12
Fixed in the same release
Records fixed by the same vendor advisory or release, as the CNA lists them.
- Advisory ·
OpenSSL — openssl-library.org/news/secadv/20260929.txt
14 records Highest priority Priority MEDIUM 3 MEDIUM, 11 LOW
Other records, highest priority first
- TI-2026-58283 DTLS Retransmits Handshake Messages From a Stale Buffer OffsetPriority MEDIUM 43
- TI-2026-58285 QUIC: Unbounded RETIRE_CONNECTION_ID BacklogPriority MEDIUM 40
- TI-2026-39654 QUIC STREAM Fragment Metadata DoSPriority MEDIUM 40
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Developer Hub 1 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat OpenShift AI (RHOAI) | Affected | — |
| Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 5 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat Satellite 6 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat Hardened Images | Fixed | RHSA-2026:74162, RHSA-2026:74166 |
Not affected: 6 products
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
- Red Hat Hardened Images
- Red Hat JBoss Core Services
- Red Hat OpenShift AI (RHOAI)
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-72897
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-x8gv-f6w5-h79g
- 2026-10-16 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
- 2026-10-27 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
- 2026-10-30 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
- 2026-11-06 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
References
More Openssl vulnerabilities
- TI-2022-01915 The c_rehash script allows command injection CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2021-02645 SM2 Decryption Buffer Overflow CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2009-03392 The TLS protocol, and the SSL protocol 3.0 and possibly earlier, as used in Microsoft… CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2022-01176 The c_rehash script allows command injection CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2014-00154 The (1) TLS and (2) DTLS implementations in OpenSSL 1.0.1 before 1.0.1g do not properly… KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 7.5
- TI-2025-14107 Stack buffer overflow in CMS (Auth)EnvelopedData parsing CVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
Sources
- CVE-2026-72897 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-72897 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-x8gv-f6w5-h79g · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2026-72897 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. Sources and licences