CVE-2026-103603
Unbounded HSS public key level count allows huge array allocation during signature verification
Description
Memory allocation with excessive size value in the HSS/LMS signature code (HssPublicKeyParameters, HssSignature) in Legion of the Bouncy Castle Inc. bc-csharp before 2.7.0 allows a remote unauthenticated attacker who can supply both an HSS public key and a signature to cause a denial of service through memory exhaustion via a public key encoding with an excessive level count, because the level count L read when parsing an HSS public key was not checked against the RFC 8554 maximum of 8, and signature parsing then allocated an array of L - 1 entries before reading any further signature data. A single verification can commit up to about 17 GB of memory or fail with an OutOfMemoryException.
INFO
Published Date :
Oct. 2, 2026, 8:17 a.m.
Last Modified :
Oct. 2, 2026, 8:17 a.m.
Remotely Exploit :
Yes !
Source :
91579145-5d7b-4cc5-b925-a0262ff19630
Affected Products
The following products are affected by CVE-2026-103603
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
CVSS Scores
| Score | Version | Severity | Vector | Exploitability Score | Impact Score | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVSS 4.0 | HIGH | 91579145-5d7b-4cc5-b925-a0262ff19630 | ||||
| CVSS 4.0 | HIGH | 91579145-5d7b-4cc5-b925-a0262ff19630 |
Solution
- Update bc-csharp to version 2.7.0 or later.
- Verify excessive level counts are validated.
- Ensure signature parsing checks are in place.
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-2026-103603.
| URL | Resource |
|---|---|
| https://github.com/bcgit/bc-csharp/commit/f47ad47c7b5745b53d3f9ac711a5a419a272a5d7 | |
| https://github.com/bcgit/bc-csharp/wiki/CVE-2026-103603 |
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration
While CVE identifies
specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or
weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2026-103603 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-2026-103603
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-2026-103603 vulnerability anywhere in the article.
The following table lists the changes that have been made to the
CVE-2026-103603 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 91579145-5d7b-4cc5-b925-a0262ff19630
Oct. 02, 2026
Action Type Old Value New Value Added Description Memory allocation with excessive size value in the HSS/LMS signature code (HssPublicKeyParameters, HssSignature) in Legion of the Bouncy Castle Inc. bc-csharp before 2.7.0 allows a remote unauthenticated attacker who can supply both an HSS public key and a signature to cause a denial of service through memory exhaustion via a public key encoding with an excessive level count, because the level count L read when parsing an HSS public key was not checked against the RFC 8554 maximum of 8, and signature parsing then allocated an array of L - 1 entries before reading any further signature data. A single verification can commit up to about 17 GB of memory or fail with an OutOfMemoryException. Added CVSS V4.0 AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X Added CWE CWE-789 Added Affected New affected value received. <a href="https://github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/blob/main/cves/2026/103xxx/CVE-2026-103603.json">CVE-2026-103603</a> Added Reference https://github.com/bcgit/bc-csharp/commit/f47ad47c7b5745b53d3f9ac711a5a419a272a5d7 Added Reference https://github.com/bcgit/bc-csharp/wiki/CVE-2026-103603