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gmrtd ReadFile Vulnerable to Denial of Service via Excessive TLV Length Values

Moderate severity GitHub Reviewed Published Jan 26, 2026 in gmrtd/gmrtd • Updated Jan 29, 2026

Package

gomod github.com/gmrtd/gmrtd (Go)

Affected versions

< 0.17.2

Patched versions

0.17.2

Description

Unbounded TLV length in ReadFile can cause Denial of Service

Summary

A Denial of Service vulnerability was identified in ReadFile() where unbounded TLV length values could lead to excessive CPU and memory usage when processing data from a malicious or non-compliant NFC source. This issue has been fixed by enforcing strict limits on acceptable TLV lengths.

Affected Versions

  • Affected: All versions prior to v0.17.2
  • Fixed in: v0.17.2

Details

ReadFile() processes BER-TLV encoded data returned from an NFC or APDU source via a Transceiver interface. Prior to the fix, the implementation did not enforce an upper bound on long-form TLV length values.

A malicious or non-compliant NFC endpoint could advertise an excessively large length (up to 4 GB), causing the library to:

  • Perform a very large number of read iterations
  • Allocate excessive memory
  • Consume significant CPU resources
  • Block execution for an extended period

While such lengths are unrealistic for compliant MRTD or ISO 7816 devices, they can be produced by emulated or malicious sources, or by untrusted inputs routed through higher-level APIs.

Impact

Applications using gmrtd to read data from NFC or APDU sources may experience:

  • Excessive CPU usage
  • Memory exhaustion
  • Application hangs or denial of service

No confidentiality or data integrity impact has been identified.

Resolution

This issue has been resolved in v0.17.2.

The fix introduces:

  • Enforcement of maximum allowable TLV lengths
  • Upper bounds on the number of read operations required to retrieve a file
  • Rejection of APDUs that exceed the requested response length

Recommendation

Users should upgrade to v0.17.2 or later.

No additional mitigation is required once the library is updated.

Credits

Discovered and reported by @ramrunner.

References

@osanderson osanderson published to gmrtd/gmrtd Jan 26, 2026
Published to the GitHub Advisory Database Jan 27, 2026
Reviewed Jan 27, 2026
Published by the National Vulnerability Database Jan 27, 2026
Last updated Jan 29, 2026

Severity

Moderate

CVSS overall score

This score calculates overall vulnerability severity from 0 to 10 and is based on the Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS).
/ 10

CVSS v4 base metrics

Exploitability Metrics
Attack Vector Adjacent
Attack Complexity Low
Attack Requirements Present
Privileges Required None
User interaction Passive
Vulnerable System Impact Metrics
Confidentiality None
Integrity None
Availability High
Subsequent System Impact Metrics
Confidentiality None
Integrity None
Availability None

CVSS v4 base metrics

Exploitability Metrics
Attack Vector: This metric reflects the context by which vulnerability exploitation is possible. This metric value (and consequently the resulting severity) will be larger the more remote (logically, and physically) an attacker can be in order to exploit the vulnerable system. The assumption is that the number of potential attackers for a vulnerability that could be exploited from across a network is larger than the number of potential attackers that could exploit a vulnerability requiring physical access to a device, and therefore warrants a greater severity.
Attack Complexity: This metric captures measurable actions that must be taken by the attacker to actively evade or circumvent existing built-in security-enhancing conditions in order to obtain a working exploit. These are conditions whose primary purpose is to increase security and/or increase exploit engineering complexity. A vulnerability exploitable without a target-specific variable has a lower complexity than a vulnerability that would require non-trivial customization. This metric is meant to capture security mechanisms utilized by the vulnerable system.
Attack Requirements: This metric captures the prerequisite deployment and execution conditions or variables of the vulnerable system that enable the attack. These differ from security-enhancing techniques/technologies (ref Attack Complexity) as the primary purpose of these conditions is not to explicitly mitigate attacks, but rather, emerge naturally as a consequence of the deployment and execution of the vulnerable system.
Privileges Required: This metric describes the level of privileges an attacker must possess prior to successfully exploiting the vulnerability. The method by which the attacker obtains privileged credentials prior to the attack (e.g., free trial accounts), is outside the scope of this metric. Generally, self-service provisioned accounts do not constitute a privilege requirement if the attacker can grant themselves privileges as part of the attack.
User interaction: This metric captures the requirement for a human user, other than the attacker, to participate in the successful compromise of the vulnerable system. This metric determines whether the vulnerability can be exploited solely at the will of the attacker, or whether a separate user (or user-initiated process) must participate in some manner.
Vulnerable System Impact Metrics
Confidentiality: This metric measures the impact to the confidentiality of the information managed by the VULNERABLE SYSTEM due to a successfully exploited vulnerability. Confidentiality refers to limiting information access and disclosure to only authorized users, as well as preventing access by, or disclosure to, unauthorized ones.
Integrity: This metric measures the impact to integrity of a successfully exploited vulnerability. Integrity refers to the trustworthiness and veracity of information. Integrity of the VULNERABLE SYSTEM is impacted when an attacker makes unauthorized modification of system data. Integrity is also impacted when a system user can repudiate critical actions taken in the context of the system (e.g. due to insufficient logging).
Availability: This metric measures the impact to the availability of the VULNERABLE SYSTEM resulting from a successfully exploited vulnerability. While the Confidentiality and Integrity impact metrics apply to the loss of confidentiality or integrity of data (e.g., information, files) used by the system, this metric refers to the loss of availability of the impacted system itself, such as a networked service (e.g., web, database, email). Since availability refers to the accessibility of information resources, attacks that consume network bandwidth, processor cycles, or disk space all impact the availability of a system.
Subsequent System Impact Metrics
Confidentiality: This metric measures the impact to the confidentiality of the information managed by the SUBSEQUENT SYSTEM due to a successfully exploited vulnerability. Confidentiality refers to limiting information access and disclosure to only authorized users, as well as preventing access by, or disclosure to, unauthorized ones.
Integrity: This metric measures the impact to integrity of a successfully exploited vulnerability. Integrity refers to the trustworthiness and veracity of information. Integrity of the SUBSEQUENT SYSTEM is impacted when an attacker makes unauthorized modification of system data. Integrity is also impacted when a system user can repudiate critical actions taken in the context of the system (e.g. due to insufficient logging).
Availability: This metric measures the impact to the availability of the SUBSEQUENT SYSTEM resulting from a successfully exploited vulnerability. While the Confidentiality and Integrity impact metrics apply to the loss of confidentiality or integrity of data (e.g., information, files) used by the system, this metric refers to the loss of availability of the impacted system itself, such as a networked service (e.g., web, database, email). Since availability refers to the accessibility of information resources, attacks that consume network bandwidth, processor cycles, or disk space all impact the availability of a system.
CVSS:4.0/AV:A/AC:L/AT:P/PR:N/UI:P/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N

EPSS score

Exploit Prediction Scoring System (EPSS)

This score estimates the probability of this vulnerability being exploited within the next 30 days. Data provided by FIRST.
(1st percentile)

Weaknesses

Uncontrolled Resource Consumption

The product does not properly control the allocation and maintenance of a limited resource. Learn more on MITRE.

Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling

The product allocates a reusable resource or group of resources on behalf of an actor without imposing any intended restrictions on the size or number of resources that can be allocated. Learn more on MITRE.

CVE ID

CVE-2026-24738

GHSA ID

GHSA-j49h-6577-5xwq

Source code

Credits

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