TLS server impersonation via unchecked certificate purpose
Published Apr 29, 2026 · Updated Apr 29, 2026
Improper certificate validation in GNU Wget2 2.2.1 and earlier allows remote attackers to impersonate TLS servers using misissued certificates. Libwget's GnuTLS callback omits the TLS server-purpose check, its OpenSSL context does not set X509_PURPOSE_SSL_SERVER, and wolfSSL mishandles certificate errors. Exploitation requires a trusted certificate and private key with incompatible KU or EKU, enabling an impersonated endpoint to observe or alter downloaded data.
Summary
What happened
Improper certificate validation in GNU Wget2 2.2.1 and earlier allows remote attackers to impersonate TLS servers using misissued certificates. Libwget's GnuTLS callback omits the TLS server-purpose check, its OpenSSL context does not set X509_PURPOSE_SSL_SERVER, and wolfSSL mishandles certificate errors. Exploitation requires a trusted certificate and private key with incompatible KU or EKU, enabling an impersonated endpoint to observe or alter downloaded data.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-1858
- Published
- Apr 29, 2026
- Updated
- Apr 29, 2026
- Vendor
- The GnuPG Project
- Product
- Wget2
- Classifications
- CWE-20, T1557
- Attack vector
- network
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Apr 29, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Apr 29, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
Compare your product and version with the public record. A matching version still requires validation against your environment.
Is a vulnerable build present?
Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.
- Affected versionversion=0 <=2.2.1
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.
Public exploit references
- Tenable certificate-purpose validation proof of conceptproof of concept · demonstrated
Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.
Technologies
Your stack
See the directory against your own environment.
Your stack
Check the software in your environment
Book a demo to see how Hinoki identifies affected software and validates exploitability in your environment.
Book a demo