Out-of-bounds stack write in MCUboot split-image validation with SHA-384/SHA-512 builds (CVE-2026-16671)
Published Last modified Sources: EUVD, CVE.org
What is affected, what to do
split_image_check() in boot/bootutil/src/loader.c declares a fixed uint8_t loader_hash[32] buffer and passes it as the out_hash out-parameter to bootutil_img_validate(). That routine copies IMAGE_HASH_SIZE bytes into out_hash (memcpy(out_hash, hash, IMAGE_HASH_SIZE) in boot/bootutil/src/image_validate.c), where IMAGE_HASH_SIZE is a compile-time constant of 64 for MCUBOOT_SHA512 or 48 for MCUBOOT_SIGN_EC384/SHA-384 (boot/bootutil/include/bootutil/crypto/sha.h).
Update Mcu-tools Mcuboot to version 2.5.0.
- Affected
- Mcu-tools Mcuboot
lt 2.0.0..2.5.0
- Mcu-tools Mcuboot
- Fixed in
- Mcu-tools Mcuboot
2.5.0
- Mcu-tools Mcuboot
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Metrics
2.9
XIEM Effective CVSS
Highest available CVSS rating from NVD and vendor data.
Source: Vendor (CNA), CVSS v3
2.9
CVSS v3
Severity Low on the scale from 0 to 10.
Source: EUVD, CVE.org
—
EPSS score
No value is available for this vulnerability.
Show all metrics
- Severity
- Low
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- 44.50 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- 2.9 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- 2.9
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-787
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
split_image_check() in boot/bootutil/src/loader.c declares a fixed uint8_t loader_hash[32] buffer and passes it as the out_hash out-parameter to bootutil_img_validate(). That routine copies IMAGE_HASH_SIZE bytes into out_hash (memcpy(out_hash, hash, IMAGE_HASH_SIZE) in boot/bootutil/src/image_validate.c), where IMAGE_HASH_SIZE is a compile-time constant of 64 for MCUBOOT_SHA512 or 48 for MCUBOOT_SIGN_EC384/SHA-384 (boot/bootutil/include/bootutil/crypto/sha.h). The buffer tracks SHA-256 (32 bytes) while the copy length tracks the configured algorithm, so the write overruns the buffer by 16 or 32 bytes. The overflow is only present in a non-default configuration: the legacy Mynewt split-image feature must be compiled (split_go()/split_image_check(), i.e. neither MCUBOOT_DIRECT_XIP nor MCUBOOT_RAM_LOAD), the digest must be larger than 32 bytes (MCUBOOT_SHA512 or MCUBOOT_SIGN_EC384), and MCUBOOT_SIGN_PURE must be off. split_go() is a public API with no caller inside MCUboot; it is invoked from a Mynewt application. In the default SHA-256 build there is no overflow. The over-written bytes are the one-way digest of the loader image and the overflow length is fixed at build time, so the contents are not meaningfully attacker-controlled and the size is not attacker-chosen. The realistic impact is bounded, uncontrolled corruption of the bootloader's stack on the split-boot path, manifesting as instability or failed boot in the affected configuration rather than reliable code execution. The fix is to size loader_hash to IMAGE_HASH_SIZE and pass IMAGE_HASH_SIZE as the matching seed length.
Source: ENISA EUVD, NVD (NIST), cvelistv5
Affected products
The following versions are affected. Older releases of the same product line are also vulnerable unless stated otherwise.
| Affected versions | Fixed in | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| mcu-tools | mcuboot |
|
|
Vendors and products
Weakness classes (CWE)
CWE-787Out-of-bounds Write
Base
The product writes data past the end, or before the beginning, of the intended buffer.
Entry at MITRE CWE-787
References & sources
- github.comFix commiteuvd, Patch
- github.comGHSA-vj6q-r752-fpqveuvd
- NVD (NIST)vuln/detail/CVE-2026-16671euvd
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).
Receivedzephyrproject.org
CVSS V3.1: AV:L/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L
Weakness type: CWE-787
Description added or changed
Show 6 original changes
Individual changes of this event as published by NVD Type Action Before After Description added —split_image_check() in boot/bootutil/src/loader.c declares a fixed uint8_t loader_hash[32] buffer and passes it as the out_hash out-parameter to bootutil_img_validate(). That routine copies IMAGE_HASH_SIZE bytes into out_hash (memcpy(out_hash, hash, IMAGE_HASH_SIZE) in boot/bootutil/src/image_validate.c), where IMAGE_HASH_SIZE is a compile-time constant of 64 for MCUBOOT_SHA512 or 48 for MCUBOOT_SIGN_EC384/SHA-384 (boot/bootutil/include/bootutil/crypto/sha.h). The buffer tracks SHA-256 (32 bytes) while the copy length tracks the configured algorithm, so the write overruns the buffer by 16 or 32 bytes. The overflow is only present in a non-default configuration: the legacy Mynewt split-image feature must be compiled (split_go()/split_image_check(), i.e. neither MCUBOOT_DIRECT_XIP nor MCUBOOT_RAM_LOAD), the digest must be larger than 32 bytes (MCUBOOT_SHA512 or MCUBOOT_SIGN_EC384), and MCUBOOT_SIGN_PURE must be off. split_go() is a public API with no caller inside MCUboot; it is invoked from a Mynewt application. In the default SHA-256 build there is no overflow. The over-written bytes are the one-way digest of the loader image and the overflow length is fixed at build time, so the contents are not meaningfully attacker-controlled and the size is not attacker-chosen. The realistic impact is bounded, uncontrolled corruption of the bootloader's stack on the split-boot path, manifesting as instability or failed boot in the affected configuration rather than reliable code execution. The fix is to size loader_hash to IMAGE_HASH_SIZE and pass IMAGE_HASH_SIZE as the matching seed length.CVSS added —AV:L/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:LWeakness type (CWE) added —CWE-787Affected versions (publisher) added —New affected value received. <a href="https://github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/blob/main/cves/2026/16xxx/CVE-2026-16671.json">CVE-2026-16671</a>Reference added —https://github.com/mcu-tools/mcuboot/commit/9fb70f00173766d73cdadd82266bd61e4ddd0252Reference added —https://github.com/mcu-tools/mcuboot/security/advisories/GHSA-vj6q-r752-fpqvSource identifier: vulnerabilities@zephyrproject.org
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