CVE-2013-1624: Bouncy Castle Improper Input Validation Vulnerability

MODERATE
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-8353-fgcr-xfhx
Share
CWE-20
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2013-1624 is a MODERATE improper input validation vulnerability (CWE-20: Improper Input Validation) affecting Bouncy Castle libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The issue involves improper input validation in bouncy castle. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 1.48.

CVE-2013-1624 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2013-1624
GHSA Identifier GHSA-8353-fgcr-xfhx
Severity MODERATE
CVSS v3.1 Base Score N/A
CWE Classification CWE-20: Improper Input Validation
Affected Product Bouncy Castle
Package Ecosystem Maven
Published Date
Last Updated

How to Fix CVE-2013-1624

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Bouncy Castle dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

org.bouncycastle:bcprov-jdk15on fixed: 1.48 
<dependency>
    <groupId>org.bouncycastle</groupId>
    <artifactId>bcprov-jdk15on</artifactId>
    <version>1.48</version>
</dependency>
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release: 

mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.bouncycastle

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2013-1624, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.bouncycastle

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Bouncy Castle in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 1.48), your application is affected.

Note: The mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.bouncycastle command inspects the resolved dependency graph declared in your project's POM files; it does not perform automated security scanning or inspect runtime dynamic classpaths. Always verify runtime container classpaths and shaded JARs.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-20: Improper Input Validation, where the product receives input or data, but it does not validate or incorrectly validates that the input has the properties that are required to process the data safely and correctly. In Bouncy Castle, software state validation or input boundaries are circumvented during processing. Review the official source advisory statement below for specific affected components, classes, and reproduction details.

Source Advisory Statement

The TLS implementation in the Bouncy Castle Java library before 1.48 and C# library before 1.8 does not properly consider timing side-channel attacks on a noncompliant MAC check operation during the processing of malformed CBC padding, which allows remote attackers to conduct distinguishing attacks and plaintext-recovery attacks via statistical analysis of timing data for crafted packets, a related issue to CVE-2013-0169.

CVE-2013-1624 Affected Bouncy Castle Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
1.48
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
org.bouncycastle:bcprov-jdk15on
maven/org.bouncycastle/bcprov-jdk15on
Maven
< 1.48
1.48

References

NVD — CVE-2013-1624 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2013-1624
Bouncy Castle Security Information SECURITY
http://openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2013/02/05/24
rhn.redhat.com/errata/rhsa-2014-03... WEB
http://rhn.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2014-0371.html
rhn.redhat.com/errata/rhsa-2014-03... WEB
http://rhn.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2014-0372.html
secunia.com/advisories/57716 WEB
http://secunia.com/advisories/57716
secunia.com/advisories/57719 WEB
http://secunia.com/advisories/57719
www.isg.rhul.ac.uk/tls/tlstiming.pdf WEB
http://www.isg.rhul.ac.uk/tls/TLStiming.pdf

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2013-1624?
CVE-2013-1624 is a security vulnerability in Bouncy Castle involving Improper Input Validation in Bouncy Castle under CWE-20: Improper Input Validation.
Which Bouncy Castle versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 1.48 across affected packages: org.bouncycastle:bcprov-jdk15on.
What version fixes CVE-2013-1624?
Upgrading to 1.48 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is bcprov-jdk15on affected?
Yes, org.bouncycastle:bcprov-jdk15on is affected in releases prior to 1.48. Upgrade your dependency to 1.48 or later.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2013-1624?
CVE-2013-1624 is classified under CWE-20: Improper Input Validation (The product receives input or data, but it does not validate or incorrectly validates that the input has the properties that are required to process the data safely and correctly.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2013-1624?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.bouncycastle'. This command lists direct and transitive dependencies in your build configuration so you can verify if a vulnerable version is resolved.
Machine-readable OSV JSON OSV v1.5 Schema
Normalized schema output
View Raw JSON 
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-8353-fgcr-xfhx",
  "modified" : "2022-07-08T18:59:52Z",
  "published" : "2022-05-14T02:14:04Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2013-1624" ],
  "summary" : "Improper Input Validation in Bouncy Castle",
  "details" : "The TLS implementation in the Bouncy Castle Java library before 1.48 and C# library before 1.8 does not properly consider timing side-channel attacks on a noncompliant MAC check operation during the processing of malformed CBC padding, which allows remote attackers to conduct distinguishing attacks and plaintext-recovery attacks via statistical analysis of timing data for crafted packets, a related issue to CVE-2013-0169.",
  "severity" : [ ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "org.bouncycastle:bcprov-jdk15on"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "1.48"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2013-1624"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "http://openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2013/02/05/24"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "http://rhn.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2014-0371.html"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "http://rhn.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2014-0372.html"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "http://secunia.com/advisories/57716"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "http://secunia.com/advisories/57719"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "http://www.isg.rhul.ac.uk/tls/TLStiming.pdf"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-20" ],
    "severity" : "MODERATE",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2022-07-08T18:59:52Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2013-02-08T19:55:00Z"
  }
}