CVE-2024-14041
CVE-2024-14041 is a high-severity vulnerability with a CVSS 4.0 base score of 8.2. It is not currently listed as actively exploited by CISA, and its EPSS exploit-prediction score is low. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-208.
Key facts
- Severity: High (CVSS 4.0 base score 8.2)
- EPSS exploit prediction: 0% (20th percentile)
- Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
- Weakness: CWE-208
- Published:
- Last modified:
Description
In Bouncy Castle for Java from 1.73 to before 1.78, three ML-KEM (CRYSTALS-Kyber) routines divided secret-derived polynomial coefficients by the modulus q: Poly.toMsg, which decodes the decrypted message, and the ciphertext compression routines Poly.compressPoly and PolyVec.compressPolyVec. An attacker able to measure the timing of a large number of decapsulations performed with the same long-term private key can recover that key. These are the KyberSlash1 (Poly.toMsg) and KyberSlash2 (ciphertext compression) divisions. Compression performed during encapsulation operates on values that become the public ciphertext and is not affected.
Frequently asked questions
- What is CVE-2024-14041?
- In Bouncy Castle for Java from 1.73 to before 1.78, three ML-KEM (CRYSTALS-Kyber) routines divided secret-derived polynomial coefficients by the modulus q: Poly.toMsg, which decodes the decrypted message, and the ciphertext compression routines Poly.compressPoly and PolyVec.compressPolyVec. An attacker able to measure the timing of a large number of decapsulations performed with the same long-term private key can recover that key. These are the KyberSlash1 (Poly.toMsg) and KyberSlash2 (ciphertext compression) divisions. Compression performed during encapsulation operates on values that become the public ciphertext and is not affected.
- How severe is CVE-2024-14041?
- CVE-2024-14041 has a CVSS 4.0 base score of 8.2, rated high severity.
- Is CVE-2024-14041 being actively exploited?
- It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 0% (20th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
- How do I fix CVE-2024-14041?
- Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its high severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.
- When was CVE-2024-14041 published?
- CVE-2024-14041 was published on 2026-07-28 and last updated on 2026-07-30.
References
- https://github.com/bcgit/bc-java/commit/1590247178f2280defa36421475f015175dfbe9e
- https://github.com/bcgit/bc-java/commit/5adb2c5c5b462a332b01a012bea0784b40b904e5
- https://github.com/bcgit/bc-java/wiki/CVE-2024-14041
- https://kyberslash.cr.yp.to/
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