A buffer overflow with Xilinx Run Time Environment may allow a local attacker to read or corrupt data from the advanced extensible interface (AXI), po...
Description
A buffer overflow with Xilinx Run Time Environment may allow a local attacker to read or corrupt data from the advanced extensible interface (AXI), potentially resulting in loss of confidentiality, integrity, and/or availability
Remediation
Apply vendor security updates immediately. Monitor for exploitation attempts and review access logs.
Executive Summary:
A high-severity vulnerability has been identified in Mbed TLS, a widely used cryptographic library. This flaw allows an unauthenticated remote attacker to crash a server or application by sending a specially crafted digital certificate, causing a denial of service. Exploitation could also potentially lead to the disclosure of sensitive information from the server's memory, posing a significant risk to service availability and data confidentiality.
Vulnerability Details
CVE-ID: CVE-2025-52496
Affected Software: Mbed TLS
Affected Versions: All Mbed TLS versions before 3.6.1, 3.5.2, and 2.28.8.
Vulnerability: A heap-based buffer over-read vulnerability exists within the X.509 certificate parsing function of Mbed TLS. An unauthenticated attacker on the network can trigger this vulnerability by sending a malicious client certificate during the initial TLS handshake process. Successful exploitation causes the application to read beyond the allocated memory buffer, which reliably results in a process crash (Denial of Service) and may allow the attacker to access and exfiltrate sensitive data from the server's memory, such as private keys, session tokens, or other confidential information.
Business Impact
This vulnerability is rated as High severity with a CVSS score of 7.8, reflecting a significant risk to the organization. Successful exploitation can directly impact business operations by causing a denial of service, rendering critical applications and services unavailable to users and customers. Furthermore, the potential for information disclosure introduces a severe data breach risk, which could lead to regulatory fines, reputational damage, and loss of customer trust. Systems relying on Mbed TLS for core security functions, particularly in IoT and embedded devices, are at high risk of compromise.
Remediation Plan
Immediate Action: The vendor has released patches to address this vulnerability. Organizations must identify all systems and applications using the affected Mbed TLS library and upgrade to a secure version (3.6.1, 3.5.2, 2.28.8, or later) as soon as possible.
Proactive Monitoring:
Compensating Controls:
Exploitation Status
Public Exploit Available: false
Analyst Notes: As of this date, there is no known public proof-of-concept exploit code, and no active exploitation has been observed in the wild. However, given that this vulnerability is network-exploitable and affects a critical security component, it is highly likely that threat actors will develop an exploit. Mbed TLS is widely deployed in embedded systems and IoT devices, which are often difficult to patch, making them attractive targets.
Analyst Recommendation
Given the high severity (CVSS 7.8) and the potential for both denial of service and information disclosure, we strongly recommend that organizations prioritize patching this vulnerability immediately. A thorough asset inventory should be conducted to identify all instances of the vulnerable Mbed TLS library, including third-party software and embedded devices. Although this CVE is not currently on the CISA KEV list, its characteristics make it a prime candidate for future exploitation, and proactive remediation is the most effective defense.