RPK Server Signature Algorithm Selection Can Dereference a Missing Certificate
Summary
| CVE | CVE-2026-14457 |
|---|---|
| State | PUBLISHED |
| Assigner | openssl |
| Source Priority | CVE Program / NVD first with legacy fallback |
| Published | 2026-08-25 13:17:49 UTC |
| Updated | 2026-08-28 19:46:29 UTC |
| Description | Issue summary: In a server or client configuration with RFC7250 Raw Public Keys (RPKs) enabled, and only the private key (with no associated certificate) configured locally, a NULL pointer dereference may occur when the remote peer solicits raw public keys and also sends the typically omitted "signature_algorithms_cert" TLS extension. Impact summary: The impact is limited to a possible Denial of Service as a result of an application abort, no data disclosure or remote command execution are possible. CWE: CWE-476: NULL Pointer Dereference Description: While a passing comment in sample code in the documentation suggests that key-only RPK configurations are supported, the best-practice RPK configuration is to always configure a corresponding certificate (possibly self-signed or signed by any convenient CA). When the private key is configured along with a matching certificate, the "signature_algorithms_cert" extension is handled reliably even without the fix, and peer clients or servers that don't support raw public keys may be able to complete a TLS connection by pinning or verifying the corresponding certificate or its public key. Deployments that prefer to configure just a private key with no certificate need to upgrade to an updated release as noted below. FIPS impact: no No FIPS modules are affected by this issue, as the SSL protocol implementation is outside the OpenSSL FIPS module boundary. |
Risk And Classification
Primary CVSS: v3.1 7.5 HIGH from ADP
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
EPSS: 0.009840000 probability, percentile 0.598520000 (date 2026-08-30)
Problem Types: CWE-476 | CWE-476 CWE-476 NULL Pointer Dereference
| Version | Source | Type | Score | Severity | Vector |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.1 | ADP | DECLARED | 7.5 | HIGH | CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H |
| 3.1 | 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0 | Secondary | 7.5 | HIGH | CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H |
CVSS v3.1 Breakdown
Attack Vector
NetworkAttack Complexity
LowPrivileges Required
NoneUser Interaction
NoneScope
UnchangedConfidentiality
NoneIntegrity
NoneAvailability
HighCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
Vendor Declared Affected Products
References
| Reference | Source | Link | Tags |
|---|---|---|---|
| openssl-library.org/news/secadv/20260825.txt | [email protected] | openssl-library.org | |
| github.com/openssl/openssl/commit/1e8c398db67404babd3e5af999bb6bd86f720c76 | [email protected] | github.com | |
| github.com/openssl/openssl/commit/581aaa0f0a35d214740f0fe1f5283ec41f1212e1 | [email protected] | github.com | |
| github.com/openssl/openssl/commit/d0af20478688a6aa2f59d61caa3f82136b181d7f | [email protected] | github.com | |
| github.com/openssl/openssl/commit/dad836b071da6579510c968615848ba03cac593b | [email protected] | github.com | |
| CVE Program record | CVE.ORG | www.cve.org | canonical |
| NVD vulnerability detail | NVD | nvd.nist.gov | canonical, analysis |
Vendor Comments And Credit
Discovery Credit
CNA: Filipe Casal (Trail of Bits) (en)
CNA: Viktor Dukhovni (en)
There are currently no legacy QID mappings associated with this CVE.