Summary
ntpd has Dependency on Vulnerable Third-Party Component
During startup, an attacker that can man-in-the-middle traffic to and from NTS key exchange servers can trigger a very expensive key validation process due to a vulnerability in webpki.
References
See also https://github.com/rustsec/advisory-db/blob/main/crates/rustls-webpki/RUSTSEC-2023-0053.md
Impact
This vulnerability can lead to excessive cpu usage on startup on clients configured to use NTS
GHSA-37XQ-Q42P-RV3P has a CVSS score of 2.6 (Low). The vector is reachable from an adjacent network, no privileges required, and user interaction required. A CVSS score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether this affects your application depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable in your environment. A fixed version is available (0.3.7); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.
Affected versions
Security releases
Kodem intelligence
Severity tells you how bad this could be in the worst case. It does not tell you whether you are exposed. Exploitability and impact are functions of runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A vulnerable package can sit in your dependency tree and never run.
Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter. Kodem's runtime-powered SCA identifies whether this CVE is reachable in your applications.
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Affected users are recommended to upgrade to version 0.3.7
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is GHSA-37XQ-Q42P-RV3P? GHSA-37XQ-Q42P-RV3P is a low-severity security vulnerability in ntpd (rust), affecting versions < 0.3.7. It is fixed in 0.3.7.
- How severe is GHSA-37XQ-Q42P-RV3P? GHSA-37XQ-Q42P-RV3P has a CVSS score of 2.6 (Low). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.
- Which versions of ntpd are affected by GHSA-37XQ-Q42P-RV3P? ntpd (rust) versions < 0.3.7 is affected.
- Is there a fix for GHSA-37XQ-Q42P-RV3P? Yes. GHSA-37XQ-Q42P-RV3P is fixed in 0.3.7. Upgrade to this version or later.
- Is GHSA-37XQ-Q42P-RV3P exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether GHSA-37XQ-Q42P-RV3P is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk. Get a demo
- What actually determines whether GHSA-37XQ-Q42P-RV3P is exploitable, and how bad it is? Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.
- How do I fix GHSA-37XQ-Q42P-RV3P? Upgrade
ntpdto 0.3.7 or later.