8.2
HIGH CVSS 4.0
CVE-2026-18036
NTRU leaks private key information by reducing secret values with a non-constant-time integer division
Description

In Bouncy Castle for Java before 1.86, NTRU reduced secret values with the % operator in three helpers whose reference implementations are deliberately division-free, so each reduction was carried out by an integer division whose latency depends on the secret operand. Polynomial.modQ divided by a variable divisor, which a compiler cannot strength-reduce to a multiply the way it can a constant one, so it emitted a division on every call including on the decapsulation path where the dividend derives from the private key; Polynomial.mod3 and NTRUSampling.mod3 divided the secret key polynomials f and g during key generation, the message polynomials r and m during encapsulation, and coefficients recovered during decapsulation. An attacker able to measure that timing can recover information about the NTRU private key. modQ now masks, which is exact because q is always a power of two, and mod3 uses the reference implementation's division-free fold and select; the results are unchanged.

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-2026-18036 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.

ID Vendor Product Action
1 Bouncycastle bc-java
CVSS Scores
The Common Vulnerability Scoring System is a standardized framework for assessing the severity of vulnerabilities in software and systems. We collect and displays CVSS scores from various sources for each CVE.
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 Bouncy Castle for Java to version 1.86 or later to address timing-based side-channel attacks.
  • Update Bouncy Castle library to version 1.86 or later.
  • Apply provided patches or vendor-supplied updates.
  • Review and test the updated library implementation.
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-2026-18036.

URL Resource
https://github.com/bcgit/bc-java/commit/9c9ad88b6003bb6230d2434bd892cc1e95b294e4
https://github.com/bcgit/bc-java/wiki/CVE%E2%80%902026%E2%80%9018036
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration

While CVE identifies specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2026-18036 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-2026-18036 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-2026-18036 vulnerability anywhere in the article.

The following table lists the changes that have been made to the CVE-2026-18036 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 In Bouncy Castle for Java before 1.86, NTRU reduced secret values with the % operator in three helpers whose reference implementations are deliberately division-free, so each reduction was carried out by an integer division whose latency depends on the secret operand. Polynomial.modQ divided by a variable divisor, which a compiler cannot strength-reduce to a multiply the way it can a constant one, so it emitted a division on every call including on the decapsulation path where the dividend derives from the private key; Polynomial.mod3 and NTRUSampling.mod3 divided the secret key polynomials f and g during key generation, the message polynomials r and m during encapsulation, and coefficients recovered during decapsulation. An attacker able to measure that timing can recover information about the NTRU private key. modQ now masks, which is exact because q is always a power of two, and mod3 uses the reference implementation's division-free fold and select; the results are unchanged.
    Added CVSS V4.0 AV:N/AC:H/AT:P/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/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:Amber
    Added CWE CWE-208
    Added Affected New affected value received. <a href="https://github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/blob/main/cves/2026/18xxx/CVE-2026-18036.json">CVE-2026-18036</a>
    Added Reference https://github.com/bcgit/bc-java/commit/9c9ad88b6003bb6230d2434bd892cc1e95b294e4
    Added Reference https://github.com/bcgit/bc-java/wiki/CVE%E2%80%902026%E2%80%9018036
EPSS is a daily estimate of the probability of exploitation activity being observed over the next 30 days. Following chart shows the EPSS score history of the vulnerability.