Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain
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AccessGain write/intercept access to encrypted fields
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ExploitReplace stored field with crafted unrecognized payload
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Executionlibmongocrypt explicit decrypt returns bytes unchanged
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ImpactApplication processes attacker bytes as trusted plaintext
Vulnerability Assessment
| Weakness |
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A08:2025 - Software or Data Integrity Failures
ASVS 5.0
V15 - Secure Coding and Architecture Integrity verification
|
| Exploitation Conditions | Exploitation requires that the application uses libmongocrypt's explicit decryption component (client-side field level encryption) AND that the attacker can modify the stored encrypted bytes before decryption - explicitly a database writer, a malicious or compromised MongoDB server, or a network intermediary able to tamper with the ciphertext in transit. The flaw only manifests for 'unrecognized' encrypted payloads, where the library returns the input unchanged rather than erroring. Limiting factors: the attacker must already hold write access or an in-path interception position (PR:L, not anonymous), impact is confined to integrity (attacker-controlled bytes treated as plaintext) with no direct confidentiality or availability loss, and applications that do not use explicit decryption are unaffected. |
| Impact | This is a moderate, defense-in-depth integrity flaw rather than a high-priority emergency. The MongoDB-supplied CVSS 4.0 vector (AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N) scores 5.3 (Medium) with impact limited to vulnerable-system integrity (VI:L) and explicitly no confidentiality (VC:N) or availability (VA:N) impact, which aligns with CWE-354 (Improper Validation of Integrity Check Value). PR:L indicates the attacker needs some privilege/position - the description confirms this: an actor must already be able to modify stored encrypted fields (a database writer, compromised/malicious server, or network intermediary), i.e. a meaningful foothold rather than an anonymous remote attacker. No EPSS score, no CISA KEV listing, and no POC were provided, so there is no public exploit identified at time of analysis and no evidence of active exploitation; the only reference is the vendor's own Jira ticket (MONGOCRYPT-966). Signals are internally consistent (no conflict between vector and description), and the realistic risk is best characterized as a bypass of an encryption-layer integrity guarantee that could feed attacker-controlled bytes into an application - serious in specific threat models but not a mass-exploitation candidate. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | An attacker who can write to or intercept stored encrypted fields (a malicious insider with database write access, a compromised MongoDB server, or a man-in-the-middle on an untrusted link) substitutes an unrecognized/crafted encrypted payload. When the application calls libmongocrypt's explicit decryption, the library returns the supplied bytes unchanged instead of raising a decryption error, so the application treats attacker-controlled data as trusted decrypted plaintext. No public exploit code was identified at time of analysis. |
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Alert meAnalysisAIv1 – Oct 08, 2026
MongoDB libmongocrypt's explicit decryption component can return unrecognized encrypted payloads unchanged instead of raising a decryption error, causing affected applications to process attacker-supplied bytes as plaintext. This is a moderate integrity flaw (CVSS 4.0 score 5.3) that requires the application to use explicit client-side field level encryption and the attacker to already hold write access to stored encrypted fields or an in-path position to tamper with ciphertext, such as a database writer, a malicious or compromised MongoDB server, or a network intermediary. No public exploit code or CISA KEV listing was identified at time of analysis, and applications that do not use explicit decryption are unaffected.
RemediationAI
No vendor-released patch version was provided in the available data at time of analysis; consult the MongoDB JIRA issue MONGOCRYPT-966 (https://jira.mongodb.org/browse/MONGOCRYPT-966) for the latest fix version and update libmongocrypt once an official release is available. Until a patched version is confirmed, apply compensating controls: restrict write access to encrypted fields so only trusted, least-privileged application components can modify them, since the attack requires a database writer, a malicious or compromised MongoDB server, or a network intermediary that can alter ciphertext in transit. Use TLS with certificate validation and, where feasible, mutual TLS between the application and MongoDB to prevent in-path tampering and server impersonation. If explicit decryption is not required by an application, disable or avoid that feature to eliminate exposure; the trade-off is loss of client-side field level encryption functionality. Because the flaw allows unrecognized payloads to be returned unchanged, applications can add defensive checks to reject decryption results that are identical to the input ciphertext or that fail expected plaintext format validation, though this is a workaround and not a substitute for a vendor fix.
Affected VersionsENISA
Affected Packages
Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)
Affects your stack
Affects 1 package in euvd
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Technical ContextAI · show details
libmongocrypt is MongoDB's client-side field level encryption (CSFLE) library that handles encryption and decryption of sensitive fields in MongoDB applications. The explicit decryption component is responsible for validating and decrypting payloads that the application explicitly provides. The root cause is CWE-354 (Improper Validation of Integrity Check Value): rather than verifying the authentication tag or integrity check and returning an error for unrecognized payloads, the library returns the input unchanged, so a payload that fails to be recognized as a valid encrypted blob is passed back as if it were decrypted plaintext. The CPE cpe:2.3:a:mongodb:libmongocrypt:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* indicates all versions of the library are potentially affected, though exploitation depends on application use of the explicit decryption API and attacker ability to alter stored ciphertext. The provided CVSS 4.0 vector (AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:N/VI:L/VA:N) and the independent CVSS 3.1 vector (AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:N) both characterize a remote, low-privilege integrity impact with no confidentiality or availability loss.
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Severity by source
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:N/VI:L/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
Attacker needs write/intercept access to ciphertext (PR:L) but no UI; impact is integrity-only (I:L) as attacker bytes become plaintext, with no confidentiality or availability loss.
Primary rating from Vendor (mongodb).
CVSS VectorVendor: mongodb
Lifecycle Timeline
1DescriptionCVE.org
The explicit decryption component of MongoDB libmongocrypt can return an unrecognized encrypted payload unchanged instead of returning a decryption error. An actor who can modify stored encrypted fields, such as a database writer, server, or network intermediary, can cause an affected application to process the supplied bytes as decrypted plaintext.
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
Information disclosure occurs when an application unintentionally exposes sensitive data that aids attackers in reconnaissance or directly compromises security.
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EUVD-2026-95163
NVD
CVE.org
EPSS
Vulnrichment
VulDB
GitHub PoC
Exploit-DB