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WolfsslApplication

CVE-2024-5288

MEDIUM · 5.9 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-08-27
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 5.7.2 or later.
See remediation →
68/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

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
An issue was discovered in wolfSSL before 5.7.0. A safe-error attack via Rowhammer, namely FAULT+PROBE, leads to ECDSA key disclosure. When WOLFSSL_CHECK_SIG_FAULTS is used in signing operations with private ECC keys, such as in server-side TLS connections, the connection is halted if any fault occurs. The success rate in a certain amount of connection requests can be processed via an advanced technique for ECDSA key recovery.

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 · high confidence

A safe-error attack vulnerability in wolfSSL before 5.7.0 allows ECDSA key recovery via Rowhammer fault injection. When WOLFSSL_CHECK_SIG_FAULTS is enabled during ECDSA signing in TLS connections, the library halts the connection upon detecting any fault. Attackers use Rowhammer (FAULT+PROBE) to induce faults and observe connection outcomes across many requests, enabling statistical private key recovery.

MitigationUpgrade to wolfSSL 5.7.0 or later; alternatively, disable WOLFSSL_CHECK_SIG_FAULTS in production if not required, as it exposes fault information usable for side-channel key recovery.

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
WolfsslApplication
Affected:< 5.7.2

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
Network
Complexity
High
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
None
Availability
None

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

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. Determine installed wolfSSL version
    Run `wolfssl version` or check the library file version using `strings libwolfssl.so | grep -i version` or examine headers with `grep WOLFSSL_VERSION lib/wolfssl/version.h`
    Affected if Version is lower than 5.7.2 (any version < 5.7.2 is affected)
  2. Verify WOLFSSL_CHECK_SIG_FAULTS compile-time flag
    Search for the macro definition in build configuration: grep -r "WOLFSSL_CHECK_SIG_FAULTS" /path/to/wolfssl/include/ or check build config files (configure.ac, Makefile, user_settings.h)
    Affected if The flag is defined/enabled in the build configuration
  3. Confirm ECDSA usage in TLS
    Review application TLS configuration for cipher suites using ECDSA (such as ECDHE-ECDSA or ECDH-ECDSA variants) or check if --enable-ecdsa was used during build
    Affected if ECDSA-based cipher suites are enabled and used in TLS connections
  4. Identify fault-checking behavior
    During ECDSA signing operations, verify whether the library halts/terminates connections upon fault detection by monitoring connection behavior or examining source for WC_SIG_FAULT_CHECK macro usage
    Affected if The library terminates connections when faults are detected during ECDSA signing

You are affected if you run wolfSSL version < 5.7.2 WITH WOLFSSL_CHECK_SIG_FAULTS enabled AND use ECDSA cipher suites in TLS connections, as this combination allows attackers to perform Rowhammer-based private key recovery.

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 5.7.2 or later
Fixed in 5.7.2
Interim mitigation

Upgrade to wolfSSL 5.7.0 or later; alternatively, disable WOLFSSL_CHECK_SIG_FAULTS in production if not required, as it exposes fault information usable for side-channel key recovery.

Recommended fix High confidence

wolfSSL 5.7.2 or later

  1. 1. Identify the currently installed wolfSSL version using your system's package manager or build configuration.
  2. 2. Plan for a maintenance window as upgrading wolfSSL may require rebuilding dependent applications.
  3. 3. Upgrade wolfSSL to version 5.7.2 or later by obtaining the latest release from https://github.com/wolfSSL/wolfssl/releases
  4. 4. Rebuild and restart any services that link against wolfSSL to ensure they use the updated library.
  5. 5. Verify the upgrade was successful by checking the wolfSSL version after installation.
  6. 6. If WOLFSSL_CHECK_SIG_FAULTS was enabled, re-evaluate whether it is still needed for your use case after upgrading.
Caveat Standard upgrade precautions apply; review the wolfSSL changelog for any API or configuration changes between your current version and 5.7.2

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

Fix this in Wolfssl Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
22.0 hours of engineering $3,860
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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-2024-5288 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
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