GHSA-hrqp-8w79-gwgw json
Remote Denial of Service via malformed NIP‑44 v2 payload
published 3mo ago modified 3mo ago also RUSTSEC-2026-0216
- cvss
- 7.5
- version 3.1, OSV
- cisa kev
- Not listed
- not in CISA's catalog
- epss
- —
- no score, EPSS covers CVEs only
- public exploits
- 0
- none known
Summary
The NIP-44 v2 decryption path in the `nostr` crate contains a reachable panic when processing a short or empty ciphertext. After the HMAC check passes and the ciphertext is decrypted via ChaCha20, the code reads a 2‑byte unpadded‑length prefix via `buffer[0..2]` without first verifying that the decrypted buffer contains at least 2 bytes. A malicious sender who holds the symmetric conversation key (e.g., a direct‑message sender) can craft a payload that produces a 0 or 1‑byte decrypted buffer, causing an index‑out‑of‑bounds panic. This can be triggered remotely through any relay that delivers the crafted event to the victim's client, resulting in a denial of service. No key material, plaintext, or memory corruption occurs.
The vulnerability is present in all versions from `0.26.0` up to `0.44.4` (inclusive) and in the alpha releases `0.45.0‑alpha.1` through `0.45.0‑alpha.4`. Versions `0.44.5` and `0.45.0‑alpha.5` contain the fix.
## Credit
Discovered and responsibly disclosed by **Muhammed Shekho** ([mhd-shekho.com](https://mhd-shekho.com)).
Patch / fix
Is GHSA-hrqp-8w79-gwgw in your dependencies? Fencer shows which of your repositories are affected as soon as an advisory lands, and opens the fix as a pull request.
Check with FencerCVSS scores
| assigned by | version | score | vector |
|---|---|---|---|
| OSV | 3.1 | 7.5 | CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H |
Affected packages
| ecosystem | package | affected | fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| crates.io | nostr | >=0.0.0-0, <0.44.5 >=0.45.0-alpha.1, <0.45.0-alpha.5 |
0.44.5 0.45.0-alpha.5 |
References
Sources
Fencer Intel keeps one entry per vulnerability: the CVE id wins, then GHSA, and records that alias each other are merged, except that two CVEs always keep separate entries. The same data is available as JSON.