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Full vulnerability report · 2026
CVE-2026-73251High confidence

Mongoose Built-in TLS: CA-bundle certificate chain accepted without any signature verification

cesanta · mongoose

Official source article: GitHub GHSA-QJ6J-2692-V2R8 ↗. Check the applicable product and release in the original source.

9.3CriticalCVSS 4.0
Recommended action
Within 72 hours

Critical technical impact with a remotely reachable, unauthenticated path; no CISA KEV confirmation is currently recorded.

Patch available
R
Operational reassessment

Published severity in operational context

Open reassessment dashboard →
Published severityCriticalOperational priority:Critical, unchanged from published severity.unchanged

Evidence used

  • No CISA KEV confirmation is currently recorded.
  • The selected CVSS metric records a network-reachable, unauthenticated path with no user interaction.
  • EPSS is 0.19% for the current model date.

Compensating controls

  • Validate the affected product branch and deploy the verified fixed release.
  • Restrict the affected network interface to trusted sources where business-safe.
  • Monitor vendor guidance and exploitation sources for a material change.

Verification

  1. Confirm that the asset runs cesanta mongoose and falls inside the recorded affected range.
  2. Verify the installed build against the product-specific fixed version after deployment.
  3. Validate exposure, authentication requirements and compensating controls in the actual environment.
  4. Reopen this reassessment when CVSS, KEV, EPSS, exploit evidence or remediation changes.
Mitigation target: Within 3 daysRemediation target: Within 90 days

This automated reassessment organises public evidence. It does not know asset exposure, business impact or control effectiveness and does not replace CVSS or a human risk decision.

Distribution package intelligence

Release-specific package status

Debian findings are scoped to the named distribution, release and source package. An absent finding does not mean a package is unaffected.

2 package states
Repository candidate not checked

A published vendor fix does not prove that a matching update is enabled and installable on a particular asset. Confirm the local package candidate before scheduling remediation.

Distribution releaseSource packageVendor stateFixed versionEvidence
Debian forkyforky · sourcemongooseVendor fix publishedDebian records a fixed source-package version for this release.7.23+ds-1Debian Security Tracker ↗Source updated 5 Oct 2026
Debian sidsid · sourcemongooseVendor fix publishedDebian records a fixed source-package version for this release.7.23+ds-1Debian Security Tracker ↗Source updated 5 Oct 2026
Direct vendor intelligence

Authoritative vendor CSAF and VEX advisories

Structured product status and remediation from the issuing vendor. Product-state explanations are always visible; large lists can be searched or downloaded.

1 current
CVE-2026-73251 · CSAF 2.0 · revision 3 · finalRed Hat Product Securitymongoose: Mongoose Built-in TLS: CA-bundle certificate chain accepted without any signature verification
1 known not affected

The vendor explicitly states that these products are not affected by this CVE.

  • All currently supported Red Hat products
Summary
A flaw was found in Mongoose. When configured with a Certificate Authority (CA) bundle, the built-in Transport Layer Security (TLS) implementation matches server certificates by name without verifying their cryptographic signatures. A remote network attacker can exploit this vulnerability by presenting a forged certificate to impersonate trusted servers, allowing them to intercept encrypted communications, disclose sensitive credentials, and modify network traffic.
Remediation
No remediation text is recorded.
Optional official sources

National CERT insights
?CERT means Computer Emergency Response Team; CSIRT is the closely related term Computer Security Incident Response Team.

Choose official national sources for this report. Each advisory shows its original language. Your selection is remembered on this device and included in shared links.

Official European source

ENISA European Vulnerability Database

Official EUVD identifiers, advisory evidence and known-exploited context. Missing fields are not treated as evidence of low risk.

1 current
ENISA EUVD identifier

EUVD-2026-63494

No EUVD known-exploited evidence

Mongoose is an embedded web server and network library. Prior to 7.23, a network attacker can impersonate a TLS server to a Mongoose client configured with a multi-certificate CA bundle. In src/tls_builtin.c, the mg_tls_init() function stores the bundle in tls->ca_bundle_der while tls->ca_der.len remains zero, and mg_tls_recv_cert() uses tls_bundle_find() to accept a Common Name match without calling mg_tls_verify_cert_signature(). A forged self-signed certificate can therefore satisfy hostname and CertificateVerify checks and enable interception, credential disclosure, traffic modification, and malicious responses. This issue is fixed in version 7.23.

EUVD state
Present in the current official mapping
Known exploitation
Not present in the current ENISA EUVD known-exploited dataset. This is not proof of no exploitation.
ENISA score
9.3 · CVSS 4.0
Advisory evidence
No linked advisory details stored yet
Recommended actionWithin 72 hours

Critical technical impact with a remotely reachable, unauthenticated path; no CISA KEV confirmation is currently recorded.

Patch available
01

What, why and how

Mongoose is an embedded web server and network library. Prior to 7.23, a network attacker can impersonate a TLS server to a Mongoose client configured with a multi-certificate CA bundle. In src/tls_builtin.c, the mg_tls_init() function stores the bundle in tls->ca_bundle_der while tls->ca_der.len remains zero, and mg_tls_recv_cert() uses tls_bundle_find() to accept a Common Name match without calling mg_tls_verify_cert_signature(). A forged self-signed certificate can therefore satisfy hostname and CertificateVerify checks and enable interception, credential disclosure, traffic modification, and malicious responses. This issue is fixed in version 7.23.

What

Mongoose is an embedded web server and network library. Prior to 7.23, a network attacker can impersonate a TLS server to a Mongoose client configured with a multi-certificate CA bundle. In src/tls_builtin.c, the mg_tls_init() function stores the bundle in tls->ca_bundle_der while tls->ca_der.len remains zero, and mg_tls_recv_cert() uses tls_bundle_find() to accept a Common Name match without calling mg_tls_verify_cert_signature(). A forged self-signed certificate can therefore satisfy hostname and CertificateVerify checks and enable interception, credential disclosure, traffic modification, and malicious responses. This issue is fixed in version 7.23.

Why

The product does not validate, or incorrectly validates, a certificate.

How

An attacker operating through a network path may attempt exploitation without authentication or user interaction. If successful, the issue may cause the confidentiality, integrity or availability impact described by the vendor.

What

Mongoose is an embedded web server and network library. Prior to 7.23, a network attacker can impersonate a TLS server to a Mongoose client configured with a multi-certificate CA bundle. In src/tls_builtin.c, the mg_tls_init() function stores the bundle in tls->ca_bundle_der while tls->ca_der.len remains zero, and mg_tls_recv_cert() uses tls_bundle_find() to accept a Common Name match without calling mg_tls_verify_cert_signature(). A forged self-signed certificate can therefore satisfy hostname and CertificateVerify checks and enable interception, credential disclosure, traffic modification, and malicious responses. This issue is fixed in version 7.23.

Why

The product does not validate, or incorrectly validates, a certificate.

How

An attacker operating through a network path may attempt exploitation without authentication or user interaction. If successful, the issue may cause the confidentiality, integrity or availability impact described by the vendor.

02

Exploit reality and attack path

CVSS severity, EPSS forecast probability, public exploit material and CISA-confirmed exploitation are separate signals.

Observed exploitation
?Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.
No confirmed evidence

No CISA KEV match was present at the last successful refresh. This means no confirmation from that source, not proof of no exploitation.

Public PoC / exploit material
?Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.
None recorded

No exploit-tagged reference or CISA SSVC proof-of-concept state is currently recorded. Research may still exist outside the structured feeds.

Likely attack path
a network path → Improper Certificate Validation → cause the confidentiality, integrity or availability impact described by the vendor
Attack surface
Network
Privileges required
None: unauthenticated exploitation is possible
User interaction
None
Attack complexity
Low: no specialised conditions are recorded
Security boundary
Not a CVSS 4.0 base metric
Weakness
?CWE means Common Weakness Enumeration: a standard category for the underlying weakness.
CWE-295 ↗

CWE-295: Improper Certificate Validation. The product does not validate, or incorrectly validates, a certificate.

CVSS vector
?CVSS means Common Vulnerability Scoring System. The vector records the metric values used to calculate technical severity.
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N

Common Vulnerability Scoring System 4.0: the compact vector below is decoded into plain language.

AVNetworkAttack vector: The vulnerable component can be reached over a network.ACLowAttack complexity: No specialised conditions are required beyond attacker-controlled input.ATNoneAttack requirements: No additional deployment or execution condition is required.PRNonePrivileges required: The attacker does not need an account or existing privileges.UINoneUser interaction: No action by another user is required.VCHighVulnerable-system confidentiality: A successful attack can cause a major loss.VIHighVulnerable-system integrity: A successful attack can cause a major loss.VANoneVulnerable-system availability: No direct loss is represented by this metric.SCNoneSubsequent-system confidentiality: No direct loss is represented by this metric.SINoneSubsequent-system integrity: No direct loss is represented by this metric.SANoneSubsequent-system availability: No direct loss is represented by this metric.
Post-exploitation / living off the land
Stolen credentials, tokens and legitimate administration functions may provide continued access without deploying a large custom toolset.
NetworkUnauthenticatedCWE-295
A

Official authority intelligence

Only matched European and national findings are included. Language selectors and unavailable sources are omitted.

ENISA EUVD · EUVD-2026-63494Official EUVD mapping

Mongoose is an embedded web server and network library. Prior to 7.23, a network attacker can impersonate a TLS server to a Mongoose client configured with a multi-certificate CA bundle. In src/tls_builtin.c, the mg_tls_init() function stores the bundle in tls->ca_bundle_der while tls->ca_der.len remains zero, and mg_tls_recv_cert() uses tls_bundle_find() to accept a Common Name match without calling mg_tls_verify_cert_signature(). A forged self-signed certificate can therefore satisfy hostname and CertificateVerify checks and enable interception, credential disclosure, traffic modification, and malicious responses. This issue is fixed in version 7.23.

Official EUVD record ↗
Cyber Security Agency of Singapore · English · CSA-SB-20260826Security Bulletin 26 Aug 2026

The Cyber Security Agency of Singapore included this CVE in its official Security Bulletin 26 Aug 2026, published on 26 August 2026. Open the linked bulletin for the product, severity and reference information published in that issue.

Official advisory ↗
JVN iPedia · Japanese · JVNDB-2026-036066CesantaのMongooseにおける証明書検証に関する脆弱性

Mongooseは組み込み型のウェブサーバーおよびネットワークライブラリです。バージョン7.23以前において、ネットワーク攻撃者がマルチ証明書CAバンドルで設定されたMongooseクライアントに対し、TLSサーバーを偽装する可能性がありました。src/tls_builtin.cファイル内のmg_tls_init()関数はバンドルをtls-＞ca_bundle_derに格納する一方で、tls-＞ca_der.lenはゼロのままであり、mg_tls_recv_cert()関数はtls_bundle_find()を使ってmg_tls_verify_cert_signature()を呼ばずにコモンネームの一致を受け入れます。したがって、偽造された自己署名証明書がホスト名およびCertificateVerifyの検証を通過し、通信の傍受や資格情報の漏洩、通信内容の改ざん、および悪意ある応答を可能にしてしまいます。この問題はバージョン7.23で修正されました。

Official advisory ↗
03

Patch and workaround

Operational remediation based on structured source evidence.

Status
?Patch availability is based on structured fixed-version fields and authoritative update references. If no fix is verified, check the vendor advisory before making a change.
Patch available
Affected
Mongoose: < 7.23
Fixed
7.23.
Action
Review the linked authoritative reference and apply the recorded fixed release appropriate to the affected product branch.
Workaround
No verified workaround is recorded. If business-safe, reduce exposure to the affected interface and allow only trusted sources until authoritative guidance is available.
Official vendor articles2 stored documents

Linked articles are downloaded and versioned as source evidence. A CVE mention or approved update relationship does not, by itself, verify a fix for every product branch.

04

Evidence and provenance

Published 20 Aug 2026 · Last source change 20 Aug 2026, 19:50 UTC · CWE-295 · Improper Certificate Validation

CVE recordCVE.org · 5.2
CVSS sourceCNA
EPSS source
?The date BlackTree first stored a score for this CVE from the daily FIRST EPSS feed.
FIRST · tracked since 2026-08-23
European sourceENISA EUVD · EUVD-2026-63494
Product sourceCNA
Remediation sourceCVE/CNA references
CWE sourceCNA
NVD statusNVD enriched

Core structured fields are present and their contributing authorities are shown above.

Material change intelligence

What changed after publication

View recent updates ↗
  1. Vendor guidanceAuthoritative vendor guidance changed: added patch: github.com/2988bc9df3a5efc9539471cb7455975fa25df483; added remediation: github.com/2988bc9df3a5efc9539471cb7455975fa25df483; removed remediation: github.com/GHSA-qj6j-2692-v2r8; 1 further additions.
    Before
    remediation: github.com/GHSA-qj6j-2692-v2r8
    After
    patch: github.com/2988bc9df3a5efc9539471cb7455975fa25df483 · remediation: github.com/2988bc9df3a5efc9539471cb7455975fa25df483 · vendor advisory: github.com/GHSA-qj6j-2692-v2r8
    security-advisories@github.com ↗
  2. Affected versionsThe structured affected or fixed version information changed.
    Before
    < 7.23 · Fixed: 7.23.
    After
    mongoose: < 7.23 · Fixed: 7.23.
    CNA ↗
  3. Catalogue recordCVE added to the BlackTree catalogue.
    CNA ↗
Material fields only · duplicate refreshes suppressed · history retained for the configured operational retention period
CVE published
Fixed release or patch reference recorded
ENISA EUVD · EUVD-2026-63494↗Vendor CSAF · Red Hat Product Security↗CVE authority or vendor reference · GitHub GHSA-QJ6J-2692-V2R8↗Patch or update reference↗Official CVE record (CNA and ADP data)↗NVD record↗
Technical terms and abbreviations used in this report
CVE
Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures: the public identifier for one disclosed vulnerability.
CVSS
Common Vulnerability Scoring System: a technical severity framework; it is not patching priority by itself.
EPSS
Exploit Prediction Scoring System: FIRST's estimate of the probability that exploitation activity will be observed in the next 30 days; it is a forecast, not confirmation.
CWE
Common Weakness Enumeration: the standard category describing the underlying software or hardware weakness.
CNA
CVE Numbering Authority: an organisation authorised to assign and publish CVE records.
CISA ADP
Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Authorized Data Publisher: structured enrichment added to a CVE record.
NVD
National Vulnerability Database: NIST's enrichment service for CVE records.
CERT / CSIRT
A computer security incident response team that publishes warnings or coordinates incident response.
PoC
Proof of concept: public material that demonstrates or helps reproduce exploitation.
CSAF
Common Security Advisory Framework: a machine-readable format for security advisories.
LoTL
Living off the land: abuse of legitimate tools or system functions during an attack.
Free version - for non-commercial use only.CVE-2026-73251 · cve.blacktree.nl