OpenSSL CMP Client Null Deref DoS (pre-3.5) via crafted EncryptedValue OID
CVE-2026-42767 Published on June 9, 2026
NULL Pointer Dereference in CRMF EncryptedValue Decryption
Issue summary: An attacker-controlled CMP (Certificate Management Protocol)
server could trigger a NULL pointer dereference in a CMP client application.
Impact summary: A NULL pointer dereference causes a crash of the
application and a Denial of Service.
An attacker controlling a CMP server (or acting as a man-in-the-middle) could
craft a CMP response containing a CRMF (Certificate Request Message Format)
CertRepMessage with an EncryptedValue structure where the symmAlg field
has an algorithm OID but no parameters field. When the OpenSSL CMP client
processes this response, the NULL dereference occurs, causing a crash of
the CMP client.
Applications that process untrusted CMP/CRMF messages may be affected.
The FIPS modules in 4.0, 3.6, 3.5, 3.4, and 3.0 are not affected by this
issue, as the affected code is outside the OpenSSL FIPS module boundary.
Vulnerability Analysis
CVE-2026-42767 can be exploited with network access, and does not require authorization privileges or user interaction. This vulnerability is consided to have a high level of attack complexity. The potential impact of an exploit of this vulnerability is considered to have no impact on confidentiality and integrity, and a high impact on availability.
Weakness Type
NULL Pointer Dereference
A NULL pointer dereference occurs when the application dereferences a pointer that it expects to be valid, but is NULL, typically causing a crash or exit. NULL pointer dereference issues can occur through a number of flaws, including race conditions, and simple programming omissions.
Products Associated with CVE-2026-42767
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Affected Versions
OpenSSL:- Version 4.0.0 and below 4.0.1 is affected.
- Version 3.6.0 and below 3.6.3 is affected.
- Version 3.5.0 and below 3.5.7 is affected.
- Version 3.4.0 and below 3.4.6 is affected.
- Version 3.0.0 and below 3.0.21 is affected.