CVE-2026-84308
phpseclib — non-constant-time X25519 scalar multiplication permits full private-key recovery
- Published
- Updated
- Reserved
- Assigned by
- GitHub_M
Description
phpseclib is a PHP secure communications library. Prior to 3.0.57 and 4.0.1, pure-PHP X25519 scalar multiplication in phpseclib/Math/PrimeField/Integer.php performs data-dependent conditional modular reductions in add() and subtract(). During the Montgomery ladder in phpseclib/Crypt/EC/BaseCurves/Montgomery.php, the reduction behavior of each step depends on the secret scalar prefix, creating per-step timing and libgmp call-count observations that can reveal a reused 251-bit clamped private scalar. The phpseclib/Crypt/EC/Formats/Keys/MontgomeryPrivate.php derivation path invokes the pure-PHP multiplication without a native-engine check, while phpseclib/Crypt/EC/Formats/Keys/PKCS8.php reaches it when ext-sodium is unavailable. Exploitation requires a reused or long-lived X25519 private key, knowledge of the corresponding public key, execution of the pure-PHP path, and a local observer capable of resolving individual ladder steps or libgmp entry-point calls. Ephemeral X25519 keys, including phpseclib's normal SSH exchange path, are not affected. Recovery of the scalar permanently compromises operations that reuse that key. This issue is fixed in versions 3.0.57 and 4.0.1.
Scores
| Scored by | CVSS | Score | Vector |
|---|---|---|---|
| GitHub_MCNA (assigner) | 3.1 | Medium6.3 | CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N |
| NVDNVD · Deferred | 3.1 | Medium6.3 | CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N |
- EPSS (exploitation in 30 days)
- 0.33% · top 74% of all CVEs (6 Nov 2026)
- CISA SSVC
- Exploitation: poc · Automatable: no · Technical impact: total
The list uses the assigner's score when there is one, then CISA's, then NVD's: Medium 6.3.
Weakness
Affected products
Affected packages
From reviewed advisories of the GitHub Advisory Database.
- Packagistphpseclib/phpseclibGHSA-q97c-8qh3-fpc6 (opens in a new tab)
References (4)
- https://github.com/phpseclib/phpseclib/security/advisories/GHSA-q97c-8qh3-fpc6 (opens in a new tab)x_refsource_CONFIRMexploit
- https://github.com/phpseclib/phpseclib/commit/fb56bc5bb9009b54a6c26b31aeec8ed944f17373 (opens in a new tab)x_refsource_MISC
- https://github.com/phpseclib/phpseclib/releases/tag/3.0.57 (opens in a new tab)x_refsource_MISC
- https://github.com/phpseclib/phpseclib/releases/tag/4.0.1 (opens in a new tab)x_refsource_MISC
Sources
The same CVE in the primary databases and aggregators, to check against.
- CVE.org record (opens in a new tab)
- CVE List JSON (GitHub) (opens in a new tab)
- NVD (opens in a new tab)
- FIRST EPSS (opens in a new tab)
- OSV.dev (opens in a new tab)
- GitHub Advisory GHSA-q97c-8qh3-fpc6 (opens in a new tab)
- CIRCL Vulnerability-Lookup (opens in a new tab)
Badge for a README or a ticket
[](https://trackcve.app/cve/CVE-2026-84308)Record last updated .