CVE-2026-53762 VeraCryp: wolfCrypt backend bypasses VeraCrypt PBKDF2 iteration count (non-default WOLFCRYPT=1 builds)
Non-default VeraCrypt builds using wolfCrypt bypass PBKDF2 iterations, enabling cheaper offline password guessing against encrypted volumes.
- Exploited in the wild
- Not known
- Login needed
- Not needed
- Attackable
- Local or same network only
- Victim action needed
- Not needed
- Fix
- None listed
What is CVE-2026-53762?
CVE-2026-53762 is a medium-severity vulnerability in VeraCrypt, published on 21 Aug 2026. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Official description
VeraCrypt provides disk encryption with strong security based on TrueCrypt. Prior to 1.26.29, non-default builds created with WOLFCRYPT=1 and WOLFCRYPT_BACKEND route SHA-256 and SHA-512 volume-header key derivation through derive_key_sha256 and derive_key_sha512 in src/Crypto/wolfCrypt.c, where the configured iterations value is discarded and wc_HKDF is used instead of PBKDF2-HMAC. Changing the PIM or iteration count therefore does not increase derivation cost, allowing an attacker with an affected container, disk image, or volume header to perform substantially cheaper offline password guesses. Official precompiled VeraCrypt binaries and normal distribution packages use the standard PBKDF2 backend and are not affected. Volumes created by an affected WOLFCRYPT=1 build require backup and recreation because corrected builds derive different keys. This issue is fixed in version 1.26.29.
Weakness: CWE-916
Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-53762?
How do I fix CVE-2026-53762?
No fix has been published for CVE-2026-53762 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.
Is CVE-2026-53762 being exploited?
It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2026-53762 exists.
Sources
Also known as GHSA-94c6-mgmv-mqc5.