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CVE-2016-9243· NVD / CVE Program· CNA redhat

HKDF in cryptography before 1.5.2 returns an empty byte-string if used with a length less than algorithm.digest_size.

HighCVSS 7.5 · v3.1—No exploit Fix available
Published
Mar 27, 2017
Updated
Jun 16, 2026
EPSS
3.5% · 89th percentile
CWE
—
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Report tools

JSON

Action score

31

Monitor

Low priority for now.

CVSS
30 / 40 · 7.5 / 10
CISA KEV
0 / 30 · Not listed
EPSS
1 / 30 · 3.5%

Affected systems

VendorProduct
cryptography.iocryptography
fedoraprojectfedora
canonicalubuntu linux

Affected versions

NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.

  • canonical ubuntu linux16.04
  • canonical ubuntu linux16.10
  • cryptography.io cryptographyup to 1.5.2 inclusive
  • fedoraproject fedora23
  • fedoraproject fedora24
  • fedoraproject fedora25

Package-level exposure

OSV and GitHub Advisory data: ecosystem, package and range. SBOM matching uses this table.

EcosystemPackageAffected rangeFix
Debian:12python-cryptographybefore 1.5.3-11.5.3-1
PyPIcryptographybefore 1.5.31.5.3

Other highest-scoring records for the same primary product.

  • CVE-2020-36242In the cryptography package before 3.3.2 for Python, certain sequences of update calls to symmetrically encrypt multi-GB values could result
    38Monitor
  • CVE-2026-26007cryptography Subgroup Attack Due to Missing Subgroup Validation for SECT Curves
    32Monitor
  • CVE-2024-26130cryptography NULL pointer deference with pkcs12.serialize_key_and_certificates when called with a non-matching certificate and private key and an hmac_hash over
    30Monitor
  • CVE-2023-49083cryptography vulnerable to NULL-dereference when loading PKCS7 certificates
    30Monitor
  • CVE-2023-38325The cryptography package before 41.0.2 for Python mishandles SSH certificates that have critical options.
    30Monitor
  • CVE-2026-39892cryptography has a buffer overflow if non-contiguous buffers were passed to APIs
    27Monitor

Remediation

Which version to upgrade to

Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.

Product / packageFixed versionSource
debian:python-cryptography1.5.3-1 · Debian:12Package registry (OSV)
PyPI:cryptography1.5.3Package registry (OSV)

Exploit status

No known public exploit

No public exploit has been observed yet. That doesn't mean you're safe, only that the bar is a little higher.

Research context

For pentesters and researchers: attack profile, score disagreement, timeline, patch commits, credits, variant and chain candidates, bug bounty scope. All derived from existing data; no exploit code.

Timeline

From publication to today: proof of concept, Metasploit module, CISA KEV and fix record. Dates are as reported by the sources.

No dated events beyond publication.

EPSS, last 120 days

FIRST EPSS daily score; only changes of 0.01 or more are recorded (step chart).

Patch and commit links

Commit, PR and diff links among the references. A starting point for patch-diffing and variant hunting; fixes, not exploits.

Finders, reporters and analysts named in the CNA record. Click a name for that researcher’s other records.

No credits in the CNA record.

Variant candidates

Same product, same weakness class, within 18 months. If the patch missed the root cause, the sibling bug is here.

No nightly-computed relations.

Chain candidates

An authentication bypass and a privilege-requiring bug in the same product, published close together: combined they may become an unauthenticated path.

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Bug bounty scope

No known public program.

Source: bounty-targets-data (public HackerOne, Bugcrowd, Intigriti, YesWeHack listings).

Technical details

Attack conditions

  • Anyone who can reach it over the internet can trigger it.
  • No account or password is required.
  • No user action is required.
  • No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.

If successful

Confidentiality
none
Integrity
high · data or configuration can be modified
Availability
none
Attack vector
Network
Attack complexity
Low
Privileges required
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality impact
None
Integrity impact
High
Availability impact
None

Weakness class (CWE)

—

CVSS vector

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N

nvd-primary

Attack context

MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.

MITRE has no CAPEC/ATT&CK mapping for this CWE.

Noroxi analysis

No Noroxi analysis for this record yet

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Change log

  1. Fix✗ → ✓

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References

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