Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain
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AccessReach open TCP port on device
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DeliveryCraft TCP segment with zero-length unknown option
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ExploitNutTcpInputOptions enters infinite loop
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ExecutionTCP processing thread permanently blocked
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ImpactAll TCP services unresponsive until reboot
Vulnerability Assessment
| Weakness |
CWE
ASVS 5.0
V15 - Secure Coding and Architecture Loop termination conditions
MITRE ATT&CK
1 technique across 1 tactic: Impact The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up. |
| Exploitation Conditions | The only prerequisites are network reachability to the device and at least one open/listening TCP port; the attacker then sends one TCP segment containing an unknown TCP option with a length byte of zero, which is parsed by NutTcpInputOptions. No authentication, user interaction, or non-default configuration is required (PR:N/UI:N), and it works against standard Nut/OS builds running the Nut/Net stack at version 5.1 or earlier. Limiting factors that bound realistic risk: the device must expose a reachable TCP service to the attacker's network position; the impact is confined to availability (TCP services hang until a manual reboot) with no confidentiality or integrity effect and no code execution; and recovery requires a device reboot rather than leaving a persistent compromise. |
| Impact | Signals are internally consistent and point to a genuine but bounded availability risk. The CVSS 3.1 vector (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H, 7.5) describes a network-reachable, low-complexity, unauthenticated flaw with no confidentiality or integrity impact - purely a denial-of-service, matching CWE-835 (infinite loop) and the description of a single malformed TCP option hanging the TCP thread. The SSVC framework reinforces this: Exploitation 'none' (no observed or public exploitation), Automatable 'yes' (a single crafted segment to any open port requires no target-specific setup), and Technical Impact 'partial' (availability loss of TCP services, not full device compromise). The vuln.today decision label is 'this_week', i.e. prompt but not emergency action. No EPSS score was supplied, the CVE is not on CISA KEV, and no PoC or exploit reference is present - so there is no public exploit identified at time of analysis. The practical ceiling on risk is that the outcome is a reboot-recoverable DoS against embedded devices, not code execution or data theft; the practical floor-raiser is that the trigger is trivial and automatable against any listening TCP port. This is a real 'fix this week' availability issue for operators of affected Nut/OS devices rather than a high-CVSS-but-illusory finding, but it is not a drop-everything emergency: there is no evidence of active exploitation and impact is confined to availability. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | An unauthenticated attacker with network reachability to an affected Nut/OS device sends a single TCP segment to any open TCP port, embedding an unknown TCP option whose length byte is set to zero. When NutTcpInputOptions processes it, the parser enters an infinite loop that permanently blocks the TCP processing thread, leaving all TCP-based services unresponsive until the device is manually rebooted. No public exploit identified at time of analysis, but the low-complexity, single-packet nature makes it straightforward to reproduce. |
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Alert meAnalysisAIv1 – Nov 02, 2026
Remote unauthenticated denial of service in Nut/OS allows an attacker who can reach any listening TCP port to send a single TCP segment carrying an unknown TCP option with a zero length byte, causing an infinite loop in NutTcpInputOptions and hanging all TCP-based services until the device is rebooted. Releases up to and including Nut/OS 5.1 are affected; the flaw is availability-only, with no confidentiality or integrity impact and no code execution. No public exploit was identified at time of analysis, and CISA SSVC records exploitation as none, though the attack is automatable and the device must expose a reachable TCP service.
RemediationAI
No vendor-released patch or fixed version is identified in the provided data, so confirm the current status on the Ethernut download page at https://www.ethernut.de/en/download/index.html before planning upgrades. Because exploitation requires reachability to an open TCP port, compensating controls should reduce that exposure: place affected devices behind firewall rules or network segmentation that allow TCP access only from explicitly trusted management hosts (trade-off: legitimate remote clients must be re-homed or proxied), and disable TCP-based services that are not required (trade-off: loss of those functions and possible impact on device operation). Rebooting a device clears the hang but does not remove the vulnerability, and no software fix can be cited from the available sources.
Affected VersionsENISA
Affected Packages
Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)
Affects your stack
Affects 1 package in euvd
Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.
Technical ContextAI · show details
Nut/OS is an embedded real-time operating system from Ethernut/Egnite, and Nut/Net is its integrated TCP/IP stack. CVE-2026-120596 is an instance of CWE-835 (Infinite Loop) in the TCP options parser: when NutTcpInputOptions processes an unknown TCP option whose length byte is zero, the parser does not make progress and loops indefinitely, permanently blocking the TCP processing thread. Because the defect is in option parsing, any open TCP port on a vulnerable device is a potential entry point; no authentication, user interaction, or non-default configuration is required. The impact is limited to availability-TCP services become unresponsive until a manual reboot-and the trigger depends on network reachability and a listening TCP service, not on code execution or data corruption. CPE data was not provided; EUVD identifies the affected product as Nut/Net TCP/IP Stack Nut/OS 5.1, consistent with the vendor description covering Nut/OS releases up to 5.1.
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Severity by source
AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
Single unauthenticated packet to any open port (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N) reliably hangs the TCP thread; impact is availability-only (A:H, C:N/I:N) with no scope change.
Primary rating from Vendor (cert).
CVSS VectorVendor: cert
Lifecycle Timeline
3DescriptionCVE.org
A remotely exploitable denial-of-service vulnerability exists in the TCP options parser of the Nut/Net TCP/IP stack included in Nut/OS, developed by Ethernut/Egnite. Nut/OS releases up to version 5.1 are affected. An unauthenticated attacker can send a single TCP segment containing an unknown TCP option with a length byte of zero to any open TCP port on a vulnerable device. When processed, this malformed option triggers an infinite loop in the function NutTcpInputOptions, permanently blocking the TCP processing thread and rendering all TCP-based services unresponsive until the device is rebooted.
Executive ViewAI
CVE-2026-120596 is a high-severity vulnerability in Nut/OS, an embedded operating system used in networked devices. A single unauthenticated TCP segment can cause an infinite loop, halting all TCP services until a manual reboot. This poses a significant operational risk: any internet-facing Nut/OS device could be easily taken offline, disrupting services and requiring physical intervention. Leadership should prioritize mitigation for critical deployments.
Restrict network access to affected devices using firewalls or ACLs; deploy intrusion prevention systems to detect and block malformed TCP options; monitor device availability and enable automatic reboot where possible; isolate critical Nut/OS devices on separate VLANs.
Threat Intelligence Overview
How this decision was reached
The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.
What every action level means
SSVC AssessmentENISA
Priority Score
Attack Technique
Denial of Service attacks render applications or systems unavailable by overwhelming resources or triggering failure conditions.
EUVD-2026-115333
GHSA-mg75-66wv-hfxw
NVD
CVE.org
Vulnrichment
Exploit-DB