CVE-2026-33308
March 24, 2026
Mod_gnutls is a TLS module for Apache HTTPD based on GnuTLS. Prior to version 0.13.0, code for client certificate verification did not check the key purpose as set in the Extended Key Usage extension. An attacker with access to the private key for a valid certificate issued by a CA trusted for TLS client authentication but designated for a different purpose could have used that certificate to improperly access resources requiring TLS client authentication. Server configurations that do not use client certificates ("GnuTLSClientVerify ignore", the default) are not affected. The problem has been fixed in version 0.13.0 by rewriting certificate verification to use "gnutls_certificate_verify_peers()", and requiring key purpose id-kp-clientAuth (also known as "tls_www_client" in GnuTLS) by default if the Extended Key Usage extension is present. The new "GnuTLSClientKeyPurpose" option allows overriding the expected key purpose if needed (please see the manual for details). Behavior for certificates without an Extended Key Usage extension is unchanged. If dedicated (sub-)CAs are used for issuing TLS client certificates only (not for any other purposes) the issue has no practical impact.
Affected Packages
https://github.com/airtower-luna/mod_gnutls.git (GITHUB):
Affected version(s) >=mod_gnutls/0.7-beta <mod_gnutls/0.12.3Fix Suggestion:
Update to version mod_gnutls/0.12.3https://github.com/airtower-luna/mod_gnutls.git (GITHUB):
Affected version(s) >=mod_gnutls/0.7-beta <mod_gnutls/0.12.3Fix Suggestion:
Update to version mod_gnutls/0.12.3https://github.com/airtower-luna/mod_gnutls.git (GITHUB):
Affected version(s) >=mod_gnutls/0.7-beta <mod_gnutls/0.12.3Fix Suggestion:
Update to version mod_gnutls/0.12.3https://github.com/airtower-luna/mod_gnutls.git (GITHUB):
Affected version(s) >=mod_gnutls/0.7-beta <mod_gnutls/0.12.3Fix Suggestion:
Update to version mod_gnutls/0.12.3https://github.com/airtower-luna/mod_gnutls.git (GITHUB):
Affected version(s) >=mod_gnutls/0.7-beta <mod_gnutls/0.12.3Fix Suggestion:
Update to version mod_gnutls/0.12.3https://github.com/airtower-luna/mod_gnutls.git (GITHUB):
Affected version(s) >=mod_gnutls/0.7-beta <mod_gnutls/0.12.3Fix Suggestion:
Update to version mod_gnutls/0.12.3Related ResourcesĀ (1)
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Contact UsCVSS v4
Base Score:
8.9
Attack Vector
NETWORK
Attack Complexity
HIGH
Attack Requirements
NONE
Privileges Required
NONE
User Interaction
NONE
Vulnerable System Confidentiality
HIGH
Vulnerable System Integrity
NONE
Vulnerable System Availability
NONE
Subsequent System Confidentiality
HIGH
Subsequent System Integrity
NONE
Subsequent System Availability
NONE
CVSS v3
Base Score:
6.8
Attack Vector
NETWORK
Attack Complexity
HIGH
Privileges Required
NONE
User Interaction
NONE
Scope
CHANGED
Confidentiality
HIGH
Integrity
NONE
Availability
NONE
Weakness Type (CWE)
Improper Certificate Validation
EPSS
Base Score:
0.03