CVE-2025-9231
Timing side-channel in SM2 algorithm on 64 bit ARM
Description
Issue summary: A timing side-channel which could potentially allow remote recovery of the private key exists in the SM2 algorithm implementation on 64 bit ARM platforms. Impact summary: A timing side-channel in SM2 signature computations on 64 bit ARM platforms could allow recovering the private key by an attacker.. While remote key recovery over a network was not attempted by the reporter, timing measurements revealed a timing signal which may allow such an attack. OpenSSL does not directly support certificates with SM2 keys in TLS, and so this CVE is not relevant in most TLS contexts. However, given that it is possible to add support for such certificates via a custom provider, coupled with the fact that in such a custom provider context the private key may be recoverable via remote timing measurements, we consider this to be a Moderate severity issue. The FIPS modules in 3.5, 3.4, 3.3, 3.2, 3.1 and 3.0 are not affected by this issue, as SM2 is not an approved algorithm.
INFO
Published Date :
Sept. 30, 2025, 2:15 p.m.
Last Modified :
Sept. 30, 2025, 2:15 p.m.
Remotely Exploit :
No
Source :
[email protected]
Affected Products
The following products are affected by CVE-2025-9231
vulnerability.
Even if cvefeed.io is aware of the exact versions of the
products
that
are
affected, the information is not represented in the table below.
No affected product recoded yet
Solution
- Update the affected software to a patched version.
- Avoid using SM2 algorithm on 64-bit ARM platforms.
- Apply relevant security updates and patches promptly.
References to Advisories, Solutions, and Tools
Here, you will find a curated list of external links that provide in-depth
information, practical solutions, and valuable tools related to
CVE-2025-9231.
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration
While CVE identifies
specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or
weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2025-9231 is
associated with the following CWEs:
Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC)
Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification
(CAPEC)
stores attack patterns, which are descriptions of the common attributes and
approaches employed by adversaries to exploit the CVE-2025-9231
weaknesses.
We scan GitHub repositories to detect new proof-of-concept exploits. Following list is a collection of public exploits and proof-of-concepts, which have been published on GitHub (sorted by the most recently updated).
Results are limited to the first 15 repositories due to potential performance issues.
The following list is the news that have been mention
CVE-2025-9231 vulnerability anywhere in the article.
The following table lists the changes that have been made to the
CVE-2025-9231 vulnerability over time.
Vulnerability history details can be useful for understanding the evolution of a vulnerability, and for identifying the most recent changes that may impact the vulnerability's severity, exploitability, or other characteristics.
-
New CVE Received by [email protected]
Sep. 30, 2025
Action Type Old Value New Value Added Description Issue summary: A timing side-channel which could potentially allow remote recovery of the private key exists in the SM2 algorithm implementation on 64 bit ARM platforms. Impact summary: A timing side-channel in SM2 signature computations on 64 bit ARM platforms could allow recovering the private key by an attacker.. While remote key recovery over a network was not attempted by the reporter, timing measurements revealed a timing signal which may allow such an attack. OpenSSL does not directly support certificates with SM2 keys in TLS, and so this CVE is not relevant in most TLS contexts. However, given that it is possible to add support for such certificates via a custom provider, coupled with the fact that in such a custom provider context the private key may be recoverable via remote timing measurements, we consider this to be a Moderate severity issue. The FIPS modules in 3.5, 3.4, 3.3, 3.2, 3.1 and 3.0 are not affected by this issue, as SM2 is not an approved algorithm. Added CWE CWE-385 Added Reference https://github.com/openssl/openssl/commit/567f64386e43683888212226824b6a179885a0fe Added Reference https://github.com/openssl/openssl/commit/cba616c26ac8e7b37de5e77762e505ba5ca51698 Added Reference https://github.com/openssl/openssl/commit/eed5adc9f969d77c94f213767acbb41ff923b6f4 Added Reference https://github.com/openssl/openssl/commit/fc47a2ec078912b3e914fab5734535e76c4820c2 Added Reference https://openssl-library.org/news/secadv/20250930.txt