CVE-2026-16001: IesEngine stream-mode MAC forgery via length-dependent KDF split

Severity: high (CVSS 7.5 v3.1)
Exploited in the wild: not listed in CISA KEV
EPSS: 0.2% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days
Public exploit or detection template: none known
Published: 2026-10-02 · updated 2026-10-27
Weakness: CWE-354

Description

Exposure of the message authentication key through the encryption keystream in the stream mode of IesEngine (an IesEngine constructed without a block cipher) in Legion of the Bouncy Castle Inc. bc-csharp before 2.7.0 allows a remote attacker who has observed one encrypted message with known plaintext to forge shorter messages of their choosing that the recipient accepts as authentic, via a crafted ciphertext and MAC tag, because the MAC key was taken from the key derivation output directly after a keystream as long as the message, while the derivation input depends only on the static key pair and fixed parameters. The keystream revealed by that one message therefore contains the MAC key for every sufficiently shorter message.

Affected products

Legion of the Bouncy Castle Inc. bc-csharp: before 2.7.0 — fixed in 2.7.0
Legion of the Bouncy Castle Inc. bc-csharp: before 2.7.0 — fixed in 2.7.0

How to fix

Upgrade to a fixed version: Legion of the Bouncy Castle Inc. bc-csharp 2.7.0; Legion of the Bouncy Castle Inc. bc-csharp 2.7.0. Check the vendor advisory for mitigations.

References

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