Libssh: libssh: denial of service via zero advertised channel packet size (CVE-2026-59843)
Published Last modified Sources: BSI, Msrc Update Guide, CVE.org, Ubuntu, Red Hat, Debian, Debian LTS, SUSE
What is affected, what to do
A flaw was found in libssh. A remote authenticated peer can advertise a zero maximum packet size in SSH_MSG_CHANNEL_OPEN, causing later channel writes to loop indefinitely and consume CPU, leading to denial of service.
Update Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 to version 0:0.12.0-3.el10_2, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 to version 0:0.9.6-17.el8_10, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 to version 0:0.10.4-19.el9_8.
- Affected
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10
lt *..0:0.12.0-3.el10_2 - Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
lt *..0:0.9.6-17.el8_10 - Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9
lt *..0:0.10.4-19.el9_8 - Red Hat Hardened Images
lt *..0.12.1-4.hum1
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10
- Fixed in
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10
0:0.12.0-3.el10_2 - Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
0:0.9.6-17.el8_10 - Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9
0:0.10.4-19.el9_8 - Red Hat Hardened Images
0.12.1-4.hum1
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10
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Metrics
6.5
Priority
XIEM Effective CVSS: highest available CVSS rating from NVD and vendor data.
Source: NVD, CVSS v3
6.5
CVSS v3
Severity Medium on the scale from 0 to 10.
Source: BSI, Msrc Update Guide, CVE.org, Ubuntu, Red Hat, Debian, Debian LTS, SUSE
0.7 %
EPSS score
Low — model estimates < 1% exploitation likelihood.
Source: FIRST EPSS, percentile 53.9
Show all metrics
- Severity
- Medium
Priority (0–325)
The priority score is a consolidated metric that condenses several individual signals into a single, action-guiding ranking: technical severity (CVSS), exploitation likelihood (EPSS), known-exploited status (KEV) and the context of the affected asset. The aim is to answer the only truly important question in vulnerability management: what first?
Read in glossary- 77.03 Methodology
Exploit maturity
An exploit is code or a technique that specifically uses a concrete vulnerability to force unintended behaviour — such as executing code or escalating privileges. It is the tool that turns a theoretical flaw into a practical attack.
Read in glossary- no public PoC known
XIEM Effective CVSS
XIEM® is the tiered managed-security operating model from NEOSEC and a registered trademark of NEOSEC GmbH. It extends classic SIEM — the central collection, normalisation and correlation of security-relevant events — with endpoint forensics, network visibility and deception technology, and consolidates them into three building tiers: Sentry, Orchestrate and Command.
Read in glossary- 6.5 Methodology
CVSS v3
CVSS is the globally established, open standard for assessing the technical severity of a vulnerability on a scale from 0 to 10. It describes how easily a flaw can be exploited and what damage it can cause — but not how likely its actual exploitation is. CVSS and the complementary EPSS deliberately answer different questions.
Read in glossary- 6.5
EPSS score
The EPSS score is the absolute model output for an individual vulnerability: the estimated probability of real-world exploitation within the next 30 days, expressed as a value between 0 and 1 (i.e. 0 % to 100 %). A score of 0.42 means „the model estimates a 42 % chance of real-world exploitation within 30 days“.
Read in glossary- 0.7 %
- Low — model estimates < 1% exploitation likelihood.
EPSS percentile
The EPSS percentile is the relative position of a vulnerability within all EPSS-scored CVEs, expressed as a value between 0 and 1. A percentile of 0.90 means „this CVE has a higher EPSS score than 90 % of all other scored CVEs“. Unlike the EPSS score, it is not a probability — but a positioning within a ranking.
Read in glossary- 53.9
- High — this CVE ranks above the median of all CVEs scored today (rank ≥ 36%).
KEV status
The KEV catalogue is a list maintained by the US authority CISA of vulnerabilities for which active exploitation in the wild has been confirmed. It answers not the question „how severe?“ but „is it already being attacked?“ — thereby sharply prioritising patching.
Read in glossary- —
- Published
CWE
CWE is a catalogue of typical weakness types in software and hardware — such as flawed input validation, unsafe memory handling or poor authentication. Where a CVE names a concrete vulnerability in a concrete product, a CWE describes the underlying class of defect.
Read in glossary- CWE-835
Detection rules
No NEOSEC detection rule is available for this vulnerability yet.
Classification under NIS2 and CRA
Rule-based classification from exploitation status and severity. It does not replace a case-by-case assessment.
NIS2
NIS2 is EU Directive (EU) 2022/2555 to raise the level of cybersecurity across the Union. It substantially broadens obligations compared with the first NIS directive: more sectors, mandatory risk management, staged reporting duties and personal accountability of senior management.
Read in glossary- Handle the vulnerability in regular vulnerability handling under Art. 21(2)(e) NIS2.
CRA
The CRA is EU Regulation (EU) 2024/2847 setting horizontal cybersecurity requirements for „products with digital elements“ — from industrial controllers and software to connected consumer devices. For the first time manufacturers must ensure security across the entire product lifecycle, handle vulnerabilities and provide security updates.
Read in glossary- From 11.12.2027, Annex I Part II CRA requires manufacturers of affected products with digital elements to handle vulnerabilities without delay and provide security updates.
ISO/IEC 27001
ISO/IEC 27001 is the internationally leading standard for an information security management system (ISMS). It describes a risk-based, process-oriented framework to systematically plan, implement, review and improve information security.
Read in glossary- Control A.8.8, management of technical vulnerabilities: assess relevance to your systems, plan remediation and keep evidence.
Description
A flaw was found in libssh. A remote authenticated peer can advertise a zero maximum packet size in SSH_MSG_CHANNEL_OPEN, causing later channel writes to loop indefinitely and consume CPU, leading to denial of service.
Source: BSI WID Portal, BSI CSAF, Microsoft Security Update Guide, cvelistv5, NVD (NIST), Ubuntu Security Notices, redhat_csaf, Debian Security Advisories, CVE.org (MITRE), Debian LTS Advisories, suse_csaf
Affected products
The following versions are affected. Older releases of the same product line are also vulnerable unless stated otherwise.
| Affected versions | Fixed in | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Red Hat | Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 |
|
|
| Red Hat | Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 |
|
|
| Red Hat | Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 |
|
|
| Red Hat | Red Hat Hardened Images |
|
|
| libssh | libssh |
|
|
| redhat | hardened_images |
|
|
| IBM | QRadar SIEM |
|
|
| Open Source | libssh |
|
|
Vendors and products
Affected operating systems
| Linux | redhat | enterprise_linux | 10.0 |
| Linux | redhat | enterprise_linux | 8.0 |
| Linux | redhat | enterprise_linux | 9.0 |
| Linux | debian | libssh | bookworm |
| Linux | debian | libssh | trixie |
Weakness classes (CWE)
CWE-835Loop with Unreachable Exit Condition ('Infinite Loop')
Base
The product contains an iteration or loop with an exit condition that cannot be reached, i.e., an infinite loop.
Entry at MITRE CWE-835
References & sources
- access.redhat.comsecurity/cve/CVE-2026-59843Vulnerability database, x_refsource_REDHAT
- bugzilla.redhat.comRHBZ#2498176Issue tracking, x_refsource_REDHAT
- access.redhat.comRHSA-2026:42922Vendor advisory, x_refsource_REDHAT
- access.redhat.comRHSA-2026:55855Vendor advisory, x_refsource_REDHAT
- access.redhat.comRHSA-2026:62217Vendor advisory, x_refsource_REDHAT
- access.redhat.comRHSA-2026:62218Vendor advisory, x_refsource_REDHAT
Changes to this CVE
Who changed this CVE and when: NVD (analysis, affected products, CVSS), the CVE publisher (CNA) and additional providers such as CISA (ADP).
Record modifiedRed Hat
New references:Show 2 original changes
Individual changes of this event as published by NVD Type Action Before After Affected versions (publisher) added —Affected value modified. <a href="https://github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/blob/main/cves/2026/59xxx/CVE-2026-59843.json">CVE-2026-59843</a>Reference added —https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:62217Source identifier: secalert@redhat.com
Record modifiedRed Hat
Show 13 original changes
Individual changes of this event as published by NVD Type Action Before After Affected versions (publisher) added —Affected value modified. <a href="https://github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/blob/main/cves/2026/59xxx/CVE-2026-59843.json">CVE-2026-59843</a>Reference added —https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:42922Reference added —https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:55855Reference added —https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:62218Reference added —https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-59843Reference added —https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2498176Reference removed https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:42922—Reference removed https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:55855—Reference removed https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-59843—Reference removed https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2498176—Reference type removed https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:42922 Types: Vendor Advisory—Reference type removed https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-59843 Types: Vendor Advisory—Reference type removed https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2498176 Types: Issue Tracking, Vendor Advisory—Source identifier: secalert@redhat.com
Record modifiedRed Hat
New references:Show 2 original changes
Individual changes of this event as published by NVD Type Action Before After Reference added —https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:55855Affected versions (publisher) changed Red Hat Hardened Images, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 (+1)Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10, Red Hat Hardened Images, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 (+1)Source identifier: secalert@redhat.com
Record modifiedRed Hat
New references:Show 2 original changes
Individual changes of this event as published by NVD Type Action Before After Reference added —https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:42922Affected versions (publisher) changed Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 (+1)Red Hat Hardened Images, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 (+1)Source identifier: secalert@redhat.com
ReceivedRed Hat
CVSS V3.1: AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
Description added or changed
Show 5 original changes
Individual changes of this event as published by NVD Type Action Before After Affected versions (publisher) added —Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 (+1)Description added —A flaw was found in libssh. A remote authenticated peer can advertise a zero maximum packet size in SSH_MSG_CHANNEL_OPEN, causing later channel writes to loop indefinitely and consume CPU, leading to denial of service.CVSS added —AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:HReference added —https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-59843Reference added —https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2498176Source identifier: secalert@redhat.com
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<a href="https://intel.neosec.eu/en/cve/CVE-2026-59843"><img src="https://intel.neosec.eu/badge/cve/CVE-2026-59843.svg?lang=en" alt="CVE-2026-59843 – NEOSEC Intel" height="20"></a>