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CVE-2024-45159

Critical Vulnerability: CVE-2024-45159 — trustedfirmware — mbed_tls

An issue was discovered in Mbed TLS 3.x before 3.6.1. With TLS 1.3, when a server enables optional authentication of the client, if the client-provided certificate does not have appropriate values in if keyUsage or extKeyUsage extensions, then the return value of mbedtls_ssl_get_verify_result() would incorrectly have the MBEDTLS_X509_BADCERT_KEY_USAGE and MBEDTLS_X509_BADCERT_KEY_USAGE bits clear. As a result, an attacker that had a certificate valid for uses other than TLS client authentication

Friday, June 5, 2026trustedfirmwareVulnios Threat Intelligence
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Vulnerability Snapshot

CVE-2024-45159 is rated CRITICAL — exploitation is trivial or already observed in the wild and impact is severe. Patch immediately, not on the next maintenance window.

Affected technology: mbed_tls.

Executive Summary

An issue was discovered in Mbed TLS 3.x before 3.6.1. With TLS 1.3, when a server enables optional authentication of the client, if the client-provided certificate does not have appropriate values in if keyUsage or extKeyUsage extensions, then the return value of mbedtls_ssl_get_verify_result() would incorrectly have the MBEDTLS_X509_BADCERT_KEY_USAGE and MBEDTLS_X509_BADCERT_KEY_USAGE bits clear. As a result, an attacker that had a certificate valid for uses other than TLS client authentication would nonetheless be able to use it for TLS client authentication. Only TLS 1.3 servers were affected, and only with optional authentication (with required authentication, the handshake would be aborted with a fatal alert).

Why It Matters

CVE-2024-45159 is rated CRITICAL severity, requiring immediate attention from security teams.

CVSS Base Score: 9.8/10

Affected Technologies

Vendors: trustedfirmware

Products: mbed_tls

🛡️What Defenders Should Check

  • Check if you are affected — Review your asset inventory for products listed in CVE-2024-45159.
  • Apply available patches — Visit vendor advisories for the latest security updates.
  • Monitor for exploitation — Check your SIEM/IDS logs for related indicators.

    • Use Vulnios to continuously monitor your exposure to CVE-2024-45159 and similar vulnerabilities.

    References & Sources

  • https://github.com/Mbed-TLS/mbedtls/releases/
  • https://mbed-tls.readthedocs.io/en/latest/security-advisories/
  • https://mbed-tls.readthedocs.io/en/latest/security-advisories/mbedtls-security-advisory-2024-08-3/

    • How Vulnios Detects This

    Vulnios scans for this vulnerability using Trivy and Grype for SBOM-based CVE matching and Vulnios CVE feed continuous monitoring against your asset inventory. Run a scan against your environment to see whether you are exposed; findings are linked back to the original CVE record so triage starts with the patch path already known.

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    Affected Products

    mbed_tls

    Sources

    Related Threat Alerts

    Frequently Asked Questions

    What is CVE-2024-45159?

    CVE-2024-45159 is a critical-severity vulnerability tracked under the Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures program. An issue was discovered in Mbed TLS 3.x before 3.6.1. With TLS 1.3, when a server enables optional authentication of the client, if the client-provided certificate does not have appropriate values in

    Am I affected?

    Check whether your environment runs mbed_tls. If you operate any of those, treat yourself as in scope until you have evidence otherwise. A Vulnios scan will identify the exact assets carrying the affected version.

    How urgent is the response?

    Critical: do not wait for your normal patch cycle. Verify exposure today, apply the vendor patch immediately, and add detection rules for any post-exploit indicators.

    How do I remediate?

    Apply the vendor patch listed in the upstream advisory linked under Sources. If the patch is not yet available, follow the vendor-supplied workaround (often a config flag or feature disable) and add detections for the published exploit pattern in your SIEM. Re-scan after the patch lands to confirm the finding clears.

    Where can I track exploitation activity?

    Watch CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog for CVE-2024-45159. Cross-reference with public exploit databases and your own SIEM/IDS for indicator-of-compromise patterns. Vulnios tracks KEV status automatically and surfaces it on the asset findings view.

    How does Vulnios help with this?

    Vulnios continuously cross-references your asset inventory against the live CVE feed (NVD, vendor advisories, CISA KEV, and curated OSINT). When a new CVE matches your environment, you get a prioritized finding with the severity, KEV status, exploit-prediction (EPSS), and a direct path to the vendor patch. You can start a free scan from the homepage.

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