CVE-2026-55653
Description
A flaw was found in OpenSSH. A malicious SSH server can exploit a double free vulnerability in the Diffie-Hellman Group Exchange (DH-GEX) client path. This occurs during FIPS (Federal Information Processing Standards) mode known-group validation when the client processes attacker-controlled DH-GEX group parameters. Successful exploitation leads to client-side process termination, resulting in a Denial of Service (DoS).
Statement
This Moderate flaw in OpenSSH affects clients operating in FIPS mode when negotiating Diffie-Hellman Group Exchange (DH-GEX) with a malicious SSH server. While it can lead to client process termination, resulting in a denial of service, the impact is limited to availability and does not result in broader system compromise. In order to exploit this vulnerability the attacker needs to trick the user to connect to an untrusted malicious server or compromise the server first. The availability impact is considered Low as the only impacted process is the single run of the SSH client trying to connect to the malicious server.
This vulnerability affects only the OpenSSH versions shipped with Red Hat products.
Mitigation
To mitigate this issue, OpenSSH clients operating in FIPS mode should avoid negotiating the `diffie-hellman-group-exchange-sha256` key exchange algorithm. This can be achieved by explicitly listing allowed key exchange algorithms in the client's SSH configuration file (e.g., `/etc/ssh/ssh_config` or `~/.ssh/config`), ensuring `diffie-hellman-group-exchange-sha256` is *not* included. For example, to use a subset of common algorithms, you might configure:
KexAlgorithms curve25519-sha256@libssh.org,ecdh-sha2-nistp256,ecdh-sha2-nistp384,ecdh-sha2-nistp521,diffie-hellman-group14-sha1
(Note: The above example `KexAlgorithms` list is illustrative and should be adjusted based on your environment's security requirements.)
Additionally, avoid using non-fatal client flows, such as `ssh-keyscan`, against untrusted SSH servers while FIPS mode is enabled. Changes to `ssh_config` will take effect for new SSH connections.
Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) Score Details
Info alert:Important note
CVSS scores for open source components depend on vendor-specific factors (e.g. version or build chain). Therefore, Red Hat's score and impact rating can be different from NVD and other vendors. Red Hat remains the authoritative CVE Naming Authority (CNA) source for its products and services (see Red Hat classifications).
CVSS v3 Score Breakdown
| Red Hat | NVD | cve.org | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base Score | 4.3 | 6.5 | 4.3 |
| Attack Vector | Network | Network | Network |
| Attack Complexity | Low | Low | Low |
| Privileges Required | None | None | None |
| User Interaction | Required | Required | Required |
| Scope | Unchanged | Unchanged | Unchanged |
| Confidentiality | None | None | None |
| Integrity Impact | None | None | None |
| Availability Impact | Low | High | Low |
Vector
Red Hat: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L
NVD: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
cve.org: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L
Understanding the Weakness (CWE)
Integrity,Confidentiality,Availability
Technical Impact: Modify Memory; Execute Unauthorized Code or Commands
When a program calls free() twice with the same argument, the program's memory management data structures may become corrupted, potentially leading to the reading or modification of unexpected memory addresses. This corruption can cause the program to crash or, in some circumstances, cause two later calls to malloc() to return the same pointer. If malloc() returns the same value twice and the program later gives the attacker control over the data that is written into this doubly-allocated memory, the program becomes vulnerable to a buffer overflow attack. Doubly freeing memory may result in a write-what-where condition, allowing an attacker to execute arbitrary code.
Frequently Asked Questions
Not sure what something means? Check out our Security Glossary.
Want to get errata notifications? Sign up here.
