CVE-2026-47738
liboqs: Uninitialized function-pointer dereference in OQS_KEM_encaps_derand for NTRU KEMs
liboqs is a C-language cryptographic library that provides implementations of post-quantum cryptography algorithms. Prior to 0.16.0, OQS_KEM_encaps_derand can dereference an uninitialized encaps_derand function pointer when called on NTRU-HPS-2048-509, NTRU-HPS-2048-677, NTRU-HPS-4096-821, NTRU-HPS-4096-1229, NTRU-HRSS-701, or NTRU-HRSS-1373. The affected NTRU constructors omit the OQS_KEM.encaps_derand member because those schemes do not support derandomized encapsulation, OQS_KEM objects are allocated without zero initialization, and the wrapper in src/kem/kem.c checks only that the OQS_KEM pointer is non-null before calling through the residual heap value. An application is affected only if it instantiates one of those six NTRU KEMs and invokes OQS_KEM_encaps_derand on it. The supported impact is a calling-process crash and denial of service. This issue is fixed in version 0.16.0.
Fixes and workarounds
No remediation reported in collected sources.
Missing remediation information is not evidence that no patch exists.
Affected products and versions
| Product | Versions | Authority |
|---|---|---|
| liboqs open-quantum-safe |
< 0.16.0 (affected) | CNA: GitHub_M |
Version ranges are source assertions. Check the vendor advisory and your installed configuration before determining exposure.
CVSS assessments
| Version / score | Vector | Authority |
|---|---|---|
| 3.1 / 5.3 medium |
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L | CNA: GitHub_M |
Exploit evidence
No exploit evidence in collected sources. This is not proof of no exploitation.
References
- https://github.com/open-quantum-safe/liboqs/security/advisories/GHSA-jr5q-r9qx-v738CNA: GitHub_M · x_refsource_CONFIRM
- https://github.com/open-quantum-safe/liboqs/pull/2460CNA: GitHub_M · x_refsource_MISC
- https://github.com/open-quantum-safe/liboqs/commit/80ceff0207658eba98bae8eb22ca3aa2a364f40bCNA: GitHub_M · x_refsource_MISC
- https://github.com/open-quantum-safe/liboqs/releases/tag/0.16.0CNA: GitHub_M · x_refsource_MISC
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