Service interruption via unbounded PBES2 iteration count
Published Dec 25, 2023 · Updated Nov 3, 2025
Uncontrolled resource consumption in jose4j before 0.9.4 allows remote authenticated users to interrupt service with a crafted JWE. PBES2 key unwrapping accepts the JWE header's p2c iteration count without an effective maximum, driving PBKDF2 work from attacker-controlled input. An application must expose JWE decryption with a PBES2 algorithm; one oversized count can monopolize CPU and make that application unresponsive.
Summary
What happened
Uncontrolled resource consumption in jose4j before 0.9.4 allows remote authenticated users to interrupt service with a crafted JWE. PBES2 key unwrapping accepts the JWE header's p2c iteration count without an effective maximum, driving PBKDF2 work from attacker-controlled input. An application must expose JWE decryption with a PBES2 algorithm; one oversized count can monopolize CPU and make that application unresponsive.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2023-51775
- Published
- Dec 25, 2023
- Updated
- Nov 3, 2025
- Vendor
- jose4j Project
- Product
- jose4j
- Classifications
- CWE-400, T1499.004
- Attack vector
- network
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Dec 25, 2023CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Nov 3, 2025Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
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Is a vulnerable build present?
Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.
- Affected versionversion=0 <0.9.4
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.
Attacks
What attackers are doing with it
Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.
Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
- Upstream issue 212 proof of conceptproof of concept · unverified
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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