CVE-2025-24032

CVE-2025-24032 is a critical-severity vulnerability with a CVSS 4.0 base score of 9.2. 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-287.

Key facts

Description

PAM-PKCS#11 is a Linux-PAM login module that allows a X.509 certificate based user login. Prior to version 0.6.13, if cert_policy is set to none (the default value), then pam_pkcs11 will only check if the user is capable of logging into the token. An attacker may create a different token with the user's public data (e.g. the user's certificate) and a PIN known to the attacker. If no signature with the private key is required, then the attacker may now login as user with that created token. The default to *not* check the private key's signature has been changed with commit commi6638576892b59a99389043c90a1e7dd4d783b921, so that all versions starting with pam_pkcs11-0.6.0 should be affected. As a workaround, in `pam_pkcs11.conf`, set at least `cert_policy = signature;`.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2025-24032?
PAM-PKCS#11 is a Linux-PAM login module that allows a X.509 certificate based user login. Prior to version 0.6.13, if cert_policy is set to none (the default value), then pam_pkcs11 will only check if the user is capable of logging into the token. An attacker may create a different token with the user's public data (e.g. the user's certificate) and a PIN known to the attacker. If no signature with the private key is required, then the attacker may now login as user with that created token. The default to *not* check the private key's signature has been changed with commit commi6638576892b59a99389043c90a1e7dd4d783b921, so that all versions starting with pam_pkcs11-0.6.0 should be affected. As a workaround, in `pam_pkcs11.conf`, set at least `cert_policy = signature;`.
How severe is CVE-2025-24032?
CVE-2025-24032 has a CVSS 4.0 base score of 9.2, rated critical severity.
Is CVE-2025-24032 being actively exploited?
It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 1% (48th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
How do I fix CVE-2025-24032?
Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its critical severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.
Does CVE-2025-24032 have an EU (EUVD) identifier?
Yes. CVE-2025-24032 is tracked in the ENISA EU Vulnerability Database (EUVD) as EUVD-2025-3602.
When was CVE-2025-24032 published?
CVE-2025-24032 was published on 2025-02-10 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Other CWE-287 (Improper Authentication) vulnerabilities

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