Remote application crash via certificate expiry race
Published Sep 15, 2026 · Updated Sep 15, 2026
Improper certificate handling in libp2p-quic before 0.13.1 allows remote attackers to crash listening applications via QUIC. The post-handshake remote_peer_id path parses the peer certificate a second time and calls expect, so expiration between the two wall-clock checks converts a validation error into a panic. Exploitation requires a reachable QUIC listener, a valid short-lived certificate, and delayed delivery of the final TLS 1.3 handshake fragment; the bounded consequence is application termination.
Summary
What happened
Improper certificate handling in libp2p-quic before 0.13.1 allows remote attackers to crash listening applications via QUIC. The post-handshake remote_peer_id path parses the peer certificate a second time and calls expect, so expiration between the two wall-clock checks converts a validation error into a panic. Exploitation requires a reachable QUIC listener, a valid short-lived certificate, and delayed delivery of the final TLS 1.3 handshake fragment; the bounded consequence is application termination.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-61544
- Published
- Sep 15, 2026
- Updated
- Sep 15, 2026
- Vendor
- libp2p
- Product
- rust-libp2p
- Classifications
- T1499.004
- Attack vector
- network
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Sep 15, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Sep 15, 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=< 0.13.1
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
No CVSS assessment is available in this record.
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
- Timed QUIC certificate-expiry handshake procedureproof of concept · demonstrated
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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