Description
ecdsautils is a tiny collection of programs used for ECDSA (keygen, sign, verify). `ecdsa_verify_[prepare_]legacy()` does not check whether the signature values `r` and `s` are non-zero. A signature consisting only of zeroes is always considered valid, making it trivial to forge signatures. Requiring multiple signatures from different public keys does not mitigate the issue: `ecdsa_verify_list_legacy()` will accept an arbitrary number of such forged signatures. Both the `ecdsautil verify` CLI command and the libecdsautil library are affected. The issue has been fixed in ecdsautils 0.4.1. All older versions of ecdsautils (including versions before the split into a library and a CLI utility) are vulnerable.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected | Fixed |
|---|---|---|---|
| freifunk-gluon | ecdsautils | < 0.4.1 | — |
Fixed in Linux distributions
Distributions backport fixes, so the version that fixes this vulnerability differs per release — upgrade to at least the version shown. From the distributions' security trackers and advisories.
Debian
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debian 14 | ecdsautils | 0.4.1-1 | — |
| Debian 13 | ecdsautils | 0.4.1-1 | — |
| Debian 12 | ecdsautils | 0.4.1-1 | — |
| Debian 11 | ecdsautils | 0.3.2+git20151018-2+deb11u1 | DSA-5132-1 |
| Debian 10 | ecdsautils | 0.3.2+git20151018-2+deb10u1 | DSA-5132-1 |
Show 1 more (older releases, extended support, other products)Fewer releases
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debian 9 | ecdsautils | 0.3.2+git20151018-2+deb9u1 | DLA-2997-1 |
Ubuntu
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu 22.04 LTS | ecdsautils | 0.3.2+git20151018-2+deb10u1build0.22.04.1 | USN-6239-1 |
| Ubuntu 20.04 LTS | ecdsautils | 0.3.2+git20151018-2+deb10u1build0.20.04.1 | USN-6239-1 |
Show 2 more (older releases, extended support, other products)Fewer releases
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu Pro 18.04 LTS | ecdsautils | 0.3.2+git20151018-2ubuntu0.18.04.1~esm1 | USN-6239-1 |
| Ubuntu Pro 16.04 LTS | ecdsautils | 0.3.2+git20151018-2ubuntu0.16.04.1~esm1 | USN-6239-1 |
Advisories 3
- USN-6239-1 ecdsautils vulnerability Ubuntu Security Notices (USN) · Jun 25, 2026
- DSA-5132-1 ecdsautils - security update Debian Security (DSA / DLA) · Mar 9, 2026
- DLA-2997-1 ecdsautils - security update Debian Security (DSA / DLA) · Mar 9, 2026
References
- https://github.com/freifunk-gluon/ecdsautils/security/advisories/GHSA-qhcg-9ffp-78pw
- https://github.com/freifunk-gluon/ecdsautils/commit/1d4b091abdf15ad7b2312535b5b95ad70f6dbd08
- https://github.com/freifunk-gluon/ecdsautils/commit/39b6d0a77414fd41614953a0e185c4eefa2f88ad
- [debian-lts-announce] 20220507 [SECURITY] [DLA 2997-1] ecdsautils security update mailing-list
- DSA-5132 vendor-advisory
- FEDORA-2022-111177a5ac vendor-advisory
- FEDORA-2022-7704d5e885 vendor-advisory
- FEDORA-2022-bf58612696 vendor-advisory