Secret-key disclosure via compiler-induced conditional branches
Published Mar 19, 2026 · Updated Mar 19, 2026
Timing side channel in wolfSSL 5.8.4 and earlier allows local users to recover ECC secret keys through execution-time analysis. GCC -O3 turns constant-time masking in sp_256_get_entry_256_9 into secret-dependent bnez branches rather than branchless selection. Exposure requires an RV32I build and local timing access to affected ECC scalar-multiplication operations; integrity and availability are unaffected.
Summary
What happened
Timing side channel in wolfSSL 5.8.4 and earlier allows local users to recover ECC secret keys through execution-time analysis. GCC -O3 turns constant-time masking in sp_256_get_entry_256_9 into secret-dependent bnez branches rather than branchless selection. Exposure requires an RV32I build and local timing access to affected ECC scalar-multiplication operations; integrity and availability are unaffected.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-3580
- Published
- Mar 19, 2026
- Updated
- Mar 19, 2026
- Vendor
- wolfSSL
- Product
- wolfSSL
- Classifications
- CWE-203, CAPEC-189
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Mar 19, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Mar 19, 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 <5.9.0
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
No public exploit references are available in this record.
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