dbcve.org
MongooseApplication · Cesanta

CVE-2024-42385

HIGH · 7.0 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-11-18
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 7.14 or later.
See remediation →
73/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
No privileges

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
Improper Neutralization of Delimiters vulnerability in Cesanta Mongoose Web Server v7.14 allows to trigger an out-of-bound memory write if the PEM certificate contains unexpected characters.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · moderate confidence

The vulnerability exists in the PEM certificate parsing logic of Cesanta Mongoose Web Server v7.14. When parsing PEM certificates that contain unexpected characters (invalid delimiters), the server performs improper neutralization of these delimiters, leading to an out-of-bounds memory write. This could allow an attacker with the ability to supply a malicious certificate to corrupt memory and potentially achieve code execution.

MitigationUpgrade to a patched version of Mongoose Web Server. Additionally, implement strict validation of PEM certificate input before parsing to reject certificates with unexpected characters or malformed delimiters.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
MongooseApplication
Affected:<= 7.14

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Local
Complexity
High
Privileges
None
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify Mongoose Web Server installation
    Locate the mongoose binary or library file (libmongoose.so, mongoose.exe, or embedded usage). Check the application documentation or binary metadata for version information.
    Affected if The installed version is 7.14 or lower.
  2. Verify SSL/TLS is enabled
    Search configuration files or code for SSL/TLS settings: look for 'ssl', 'tls', 'https', or 'mgos_ssl' configuration keywords. Check if the server listens on HTTPS ports (typically 443, 8443).
    Affected if SSL/TLS is enabled and the server accepts HTTPS connections.
  3. Confirm PEM certificate loading is in use
    Examine configuration for certificate file paths: search for 'cert', 'certificate', '.pem', 'ssl_cert', 'ssl_key', or similar directives. Look for code that loads PEM files via mg_http_parse_pem() or similar functions.
    Affected if The server loads PEM-format certificate files for SSL/TLS.
  4. Check certificate input source
    Review access controls and input paths for certificate loading. Determine if certificates can be supplied by untrusted sources, such as via API endpoints, uploaded files, or client-provided certificates.
    Affected if External or untrusted parties can supply certificate data to the server.

You are affected if Cesanta Mongoose version 7.14 or lower is running with SSL/TLS enabled and PEM certificates can be loaded from an attacker-controlled source.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 7.14
Interim mitigation

Upgrade to a patched version of Mongoose Web Server. Additionally, implement strict validation of PEM certificate input before parsing to reject certificates with unexpected characters or malformed delimiters.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Mongoose >= 7.15

  1. 1. Identify all deployments using Mongoose library version 7.14 or earlier
  2. 2. Locate the project dependency configuration (package.json, go.mod, or other package manager files)
  3. 3. Update the Mongoose dependency to version 7.15 or later which contains the security fix
  4. 4. Rebuild and redeploy all affected applications
  5. 5. Verify the fix by testing PEM certificate loading with various certificate formats
  6. 6. Monitor for any regressions in SSL/TLS functionality
Caveat Minor version upgrade typically safe; verify SSL/TLS certificate handling behavior in your environment

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Mongoose Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
16.0 hours of engineering $2,820
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2024-42385 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data