CVE-2026-55199 PUBLISHED

libssh2 - Pre-Authentication DoS via SSH_MSG_EXT_INFO Handler

Assigner: VulnCheck
Reserved: 16.06.2026 Published: 17.06.2026 Updated: 18.06.2026

libssh2 through 1.11.1, fixed in commit 1762685, contains a pre-authentication denial of service vulnerability in the SSH_MSG_EXT_INFO handler in src/packet.c that allows a malicious SSH server to cause a client CPU exhaustion loop by sending a crafted extension count value. A malicious server can set nr_extensions to 0xFFFFFFFF during key exchange, causing the client to spin in a tight CPU loop for over 60 seconds because return values from _libssh2_get_string() are unchecked and the session timeout does not apply to CPU-bound loops.

Metrics

CVSS Vector: CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
CVSS Score: 8.2

Product Status

Vendor libssh2
Product libssh2
Versions Default: unaffected
  • affected from 0 to 1.11.1 (incl.)
  • Version 17626857d20b3c9a1addfa45979dadcee1cd84a4 is unaffected

Credits

  • Tristan Madani (@TristanInSec) finder

References

Problem Types

  • Loop with Unreachable Exit Condition ('Infinite Loop') CWE