VulnerabilityPublished 5 Mar 2026

CVE-2024-57854: DOUGDUDE Net::NSCA::Client · PRNG

Affects DOUGDUDE Net::NSCA::ClientSource CVE Database V5

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Not known to be exploited · CVSS 9.1 Critical.

Data as of 30 Oct 2026, 11:52 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

9.1Critical

How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.

Contested

Critical score, yet low EPSS after six months

EPSS: 0.4% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 36% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N

Attack Vector: Network
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: None
User Interaction: None
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: High
Integrity: High
Availability: None

Bold values are the worst case: easiest to exploit or largest impact.

Attack Vector: Network: The vulnerable component is bound to the network stack and the set of possible attackers extends beyond the other options listed, up to and including the entire Internet. Such a vulnerability is often termed 'remotely exploitable' and can be thought of as an attack being exploitable at the protocol level one or more network hops away (e.g., across one or more routers).
Attack Complexity: Low: Specialized access conditions or extenuating circumstances do not exist. An attacker can expect repeatable success against the vulnerable component.
Privileges Required: None: The attacker is unauthorized prior to attack, and therefore does not require any access to settings or files to carry out an attack.
User Interaction: None: The vulnerable system can be exploited without any interaction from any user.
Scope: Unchanged: An exploited vulnerability can only affect resources managed by the same security authority. In this case, the vulnerable component and the impacted component are either the same, or both are managed by the same security authority.
Confidentiality: High: There is total loss of confidentiality, resulting in all resources within the impacted component being divulged to the attacker. Alternatively, access to only some restricted information is obtained, but the disclosed information presents a direct, serious impact.
Integrity: High: There is a total loss of integrity, or a complete loss of protection. For example, the attacker is able to modify any/all files protected by the impacted component. Alternatively, only some files can be modified, but malicious modification would present a direct, serious consequence to the impacted component.
Availability: None: There is no impact to availability within the impacted component.

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v3.1 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 5 Mar 2026
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponized: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by 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 30 Oct 2026.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponized: A Metasploit exploit module or Exploit-DB entry exists (Metasploit scanner modules do not count), or CISA SSVC or the CVSS exploit maturity reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
DOUGDUDENet::NSCA::Client	Affected <=0.009002	Fixed in–
GitHubNet-NSCA-Client`pkg:github/Net-NSCA-Client`Other threats	Affected <=0.009002	Fixed in–

Check your own hosts for these packages with threat-finder (opens in a new tab), our free open-source scanner.

AI-suggested

To mitigate CVE-2024-57854, organizations should first identify all deployments of the DOUGDUDE Net::NSCA::Client Perl module in their environments. Until an official patch is released, users should avoid using versions up to 0.009002 and consider rolling back to versions that do not use Data::Rand::Obscure or manually patch the module to replace the use of Perl's rand() with a cryptographically secure PRNG, such as those provided by Crypt::Random or Crypt::PRNG modules. Implementing additional network-level protections, such as encrypting NSCA traffic with TLS tunnels or VPNs, can reduce exposure to interception and replay attacks. Monitoring for unusual NSCA traffic patterns or alert anomalies can help detect exploitation attempts. Organizations should also engage with the module maintainers or CPAN security teams to track patch releases and apply updates promptly. Finally, educating system administrators about the risks of weak cryptographic primitives and enforcing secure coding practices in Perl modules will help prevent similar vulnerabilities.

Description

Net::NSCA::Client versions through 0.009002 for Perl uses a poor random number generator. Version v0.003 switched to use Data::Rand::Obscure instead of Crypt::Random for generation of a random initialisation vectors. Data::Rand::Obscure uses Perl's built-in rand() function, which is not suitable for cryptographic functions.

Impact

The primary impact of CVE-2024-57854 is the potential compromise of cryptographic security in systems using the vulnerable Net::NSCA::Client module. Predictable initialization vectors can lead to weakened encryption, enabling attackers to decrypt or manipulate monitoring data or commands. This could result in unauthorized disclosure of sensitive monitoring information, tampering with alerting mechanisms, or bypassing security controls that rely on NSCA communications. Organizations relying on Nagios or similar monitoring infrastructures that use this Perl client may face risks of undetected system failures or false alerts, impacting operational integrity and availability. The vulnerability could also facilitate lateral movement or privilege escalation if attackers exploit predictable cryptographic elements to inject malicious payloads or commands. While no active exploits are known, the widespread use of Perl in system administration and monitoring means the vulnerability could be leveraged in targeted attacks against critical infrastructure, especially in sectors like finance, energy, telecommunications, and government. The impact is thus significant for organizations that depend on secure monitoring and alerting systems.

CWE-338Use of Cryptographically Weak Pseudo-Random Number Generator (PRNG) (opens in a new tab)
Base weaknessLikelihood of exploit: MediumOWASP Top 10 A04:2025: Cryptographic Failures (opens in a new tab)
The product uses a Pseudo-Random Number Generator (PRNG) in a security context, but the PRNG's algorithm is not cryptographically strong.
Implementation
Use functions or hardware which use a hardware-based random number generation for all crypto. This is the recommended solution. Use CyptGenRandom on Windows, or hw_rand() on Linux.
OWASP Cheat Sheets
Transport Layer Protection (opens in a new tab)
User Privacy Protection (opens in a new tab)
Password Storage (opens in a new tab)
Cryptographic Storage (opens in a new tab)
HSTS (opens in a new tab)
OWASP ASVS 4.0.3
V6.3.3 (opens in a new tab)
V6.3.2 (opens in a new tab)
V6.3.1 (opens in a new tab)
From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

References

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 5 Mar 2026, 03:33 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-338

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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