MITM interception via inverted IP SAN comparison
Published Aug 20, 2026 · Updated Aug 20, 2026
Certificate validation bypass in libgit2 before 1.8.6 and 1.9.5 allows network attackers to intercept HTTPS Git traffic via IP-literal URLs. In OpenSSL builds, verify_server_cert in src/libgit2/streams/openssl.c applies !!memcmp to GEN_IPADD SubjectAltName data, reversing host-IP matching so mismatched IP SANs are accepted and correct ones are rejected. Exploitation requires a man-in-the-middle position, an IP-literal HTTPS remote, and a CA-trusted certificate containing any IP SubjectAltName; DNS-name validation and non-OpenSSL backends are unaffected.
Summary
What happened
Certificate validation bypass in libgit2 before 1.8.6 and 1.9.5 allows network attackers to intercept HTTPS Git traffic via IP-literal URLs. In OpenSSL builds, verify_server_cert in src/libgit2/streams/openssl.c applies !!memcmp to GEN_IPADD SubjectAltName data, reversing host-IP matching so mismatched IP SANs are accepted and correct ones are rejected. Exploitation requires a man-in-the-middle position, an IP-literal HTTPS remote, and a CA-trusted certificate containing any IP SubjectAltName; DNS-name validation and non-OpenSSL backends are unaffected.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-53583
- Published
- Aug 20, 2026
- Updated
- Aug 20, 2026
- Vendor
- libgit2
- Product
- libgit2
- Classifications
- CWE-297, CWE-295, T1557
- Attack vector
- network
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Aug 20, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Aug 20, 2026Record 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=< 1.8.6
- Affected versionversion=>= 1.9.0, < 1.9.5
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
- GHSA-h7gc-w2gg-p9xp PoC stepsproof 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
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