CVE-2026-22026 CryptoLib Unbounded Memory Allocation in KMC HTTP Response Handler Allows Resource Exhaustion
A malicious server can cause resource exhaustion and process termination in CryptoLib clients by sending unbounded HTTP responses.
- Exploited in the wild
- Not known
- Login needed
- Not needed
- Attackable
- Over the internet
- Victim action needed
- Not needed
- Fix
- None listed
What is CVE-2026-22026?
CVE-2026-22026 is a high-severity denial of service vulnerability in nasa CryptoLib, published on 10 Jan 2026. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Official description
CryptoLib provides a software-only solution using the CCSDS Space Data Link Security Protocol - Extended Procedures (SDLS-EP) to secure communications between a spacecraft running the core Flight System (cFS) and a ground station. Prior to version 1.4.3, the libcurl write_callback function in the KMC crypto service client allows unbounded memory growth by reallocating response buffers without any size limit or overflow check. A malicious KMC server can return arbitrarily large HTTP responses, forcing the client to allocate excessive memory until the process is terminated by the OS. This issue has been patched in version 1.4.3.
Weakness: CWE-789
Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-22026?
It affects 1 product.
Products include Nasa Cryptolib.
How do I fix CVE-2026-22026?
No fix has been published for CVE-2026-22026 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.
Upgrade, then put limits on request size, rate and nesting depth so one client cannot exhaust the service. More about Denial of service.
Is CVE-2026-22026 being exploited?
It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2026-22026 exists.
Other vulnerabilities in nasa CryptoLib
- CVE-2025-30216 CryptoLib Has Heap Overflow in Crypto_TM_ProcessSecurity due to Unchecked Secondary Header Length
- CVE-2025-30356 Heap Buffer Overflow via Incomplete Length Check in `Crypto_TC_ApplySecurity`
- CVE-2025-29909 CryptoLib's Crypto_TC_ApplySecurity() Has a Heap Buffer Overflow Vulnerability
- CVE-2025-29911 CryptoLib Has Heap Buffer Overflow in Crypto_AOS_ProcessSecurity Function
- CVE-2025-29912 CryptoLib Has Heap Buffer Overflow Due to Unsigned Integer Underflow in Crypto_TC_ProcessSecurity
Sources
Also known as GHSA-w9cm-q69w-34x7.