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VulnerabilityPublished Updated

CVE-2024-45238: Fort · NULL Pointer Dereference

Source CVE Database V5

0

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 7.5 High · fixed in 1.6.3 : patch Fort soon.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 17:16 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score
7.5High
How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.
EPSS
0.3% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 23% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Affects
Fort before 1.6.3
Patch
Available – fixed in 1.6.3
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

Exploitation evidence

  1. Disclosed: evidence found.

    CVE published 24 Aug 2024

  2. Detectable: no evidence on record.

    No public nuclei template indexed

  3. Weaponised: no evidence on record.

    No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB

  4. Exploited in the wild: no evidence on record.

    Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation

  5. Observed by OffSeq Mirage: no evidence on record.

    No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 26 Oct 2026.

What to do

AI-suggested

European organizations using Fort should upgrade to version 1.6.3 or later, where this vulnerability is fixed. If immediate upgrade is not possible, organizations should consider deploying network-level protections to restrict access to RPKI repositories, especially limiting rsync and RRDP traffic to trusted sources. Monitoring Fort logs for crashes or unusual behavior can provide early warning of exploitation attempts. Implementing redundancy in RPKI validation infrastructure can reduce impact of a single instance crashing. Additionally, organizations should verify that their OpenSSL libraries are updated to version 3 or later, as this mitigates the parsing issue at the cryptographic library level. Network operators should coordinate with upstream providers and RPKI Trust Anchor operators to ensure repository integrity and monitor for suspicious repository behavior. Regular vulnerability scanning and patch management processes should prioritize this update due to its impact on routing security. Finally, consider deploying fallback routing policies that minimize risk during RPKI validation outages.

Description

An issue was discovered in Fort before 1.6.3. A malicious RPKI repository that descends from a (trusted) Trust Anchor can serve (via rsync or RRDP) a resource certificate containing a bit string that doesn't properly decode into a Subject Public Key. OpenSSL does not report this problem during parsing, and when compiled with OpenSSL libcrypto versions below 3, Fort recklessly dereferences the pointer. Because Fort is an RPKI Relying Party, a crash can lead to Route Origin Validation unavailability, which can lead to compromised routing.

References

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