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Oct 13, 2025 by wbrum.org 54 views

RUSTSEC-2025-0009: Some AES functions may panic when overflow checking is enabled.

Introduction

RUSTSEC-2025-0009 is a security advisory issued by RustSec, a project that aims to provide a centralized platform for reporting and tracking security vulnerabilities in Rust libraries. This advisory highlights a potential security issue in the ring crate, a popular Rust library for cryptographic primitives. In this article, we will delve into the details of the advisory, its impact, and the recommended mitigation strategies.

Overview of the Advisory

The advisory reports that some AES functions in the ring crate may panic when overflow checking is enabled. This can occur in two scenarios:

QUIC protocol: When an attacker sends a specially-crafted packet, it can induce a panic in the ring::aead::quic::HeaderProtectionKey::new_mask() function. Even unintentionally, this panic is likely to occur in 1 out of every 2^32 packets sent and/or received.
Large data encryption/decryption: On 64-bit targets, operations using ring::aead::{AES_128_GCM, AES_256_GCM} may panic when overflow checking is enabled, when encrypting/decrypting approximately 68,719,476,700 bytes (about 64 gigabytes) of data in a single chunk.

Impact of the Advisory

The impact of this advisory is significant, as it can lead to a denial-of-service (DoS) attack in certain scenarios. However, it's worth noting that protocols like TLS and SSH are not affected by this issue, as they break large amounts of data into small chunks. Similarly, most applications will not attempt to encrypt/decrypt 64GB of data in one chunk.

Mitigation Strategies

To mitigate this issue, you can take the following steps:

Disable overflow checking: By default, overflow checking is not enabled in release mode. However, you can override this by setting RUSTFLAGS="-C overflow-checks" or overflow-checks = true in the Cargo.toml profile.
Upgrade to a patched version: The advisory recommends upgrading to a version of the ring crate that is greater than or equal to 0.17.12.
Use a secure random number generator: To prevent the panic in the QUIC protocol, you can use a secure random number generator to generate the HeaderProtectionKey.

Additional Information

For additional details on this advisory, please refer to the advisory page.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the RUSTSEC-2025-0009 advisory highlights a potential security issue in the ring crate. While the impact of this issue is significant, the recommended mitigation strategies can help prevent a denial-of-service (DoS) attack. By following the steps outlined in this article, you can ensure the security and integrity of your Rust applications.

Recommended Version

The recommended version of the ring crate is >=0.17.12.

Affected Versions

The affected versions of the ring crate are 0.17.8.

Patched Versions

The patched versions of the ring crate are >=0.17.12.

CVE

The CVE for this advisory is not available.

References

Related Advisories

RUSTSEC-2024-0001: Potential security issue in the tokio crate
RUSTSEC-2023-0001: Potential security issue in the actix crate
RUSTSEC-2025-0009: Some AES functions may panic when overflow checking is enabled. - Q&A

Introduction

In our previous article, we discussed the RUSTSEC-2025-0009 advisory, which highlights a potential security issue in the ring crate. In this Q&A article, we will address some of the most frequently asked questions related to this advisory.

Q1: What is the RUSTSEC-2025-0009 advisory?

A1: The RUSTSEC-2025-0009 advisory is a security advisory issued by RustSec, a project that aims to provide a centralized platform for reporting and tracking security vulnerabilities in Rust libraries. This advisory highlights a potential security issue in the ring crate, a popular Rust library for cryptographic primitives.

Q2: What is the impact of this advisory?

A2: The impact of this advisory is significant, as it can lead to a denial-of-service (DoS) attack in certain scenarios. However, it's worth noting that protocols like TLS and SSH are not affected by this issue, as they break large amounts of data into small chunks. Similarly, most applications will not attempt to encrypt/decrypt 64GB of data in one chunk.

Q3: What are the scenarios in which this panic can occur?

A3: The panic can occur in two scenarios:

QUIC protocol: When an attacker sends a specially-crafted packet, it can induce a panic in the ring::aead::quic::HeaderProtectionKey::new_mask() function. Even unintentionally, this panic is likely to occur in 1 out of every 2^32 packets sent and/or received.
Large data encryption/decryption: On 64-bit targets, operations using ring::aead::{AES_128_GCM, AES_256_GCM} may panic when overflow checking is enabled, when encrypting/decrypting approximately 68,719,476,700 bytes (about 64 gigabytes) of data in a single chunk.

Q4: How can I mitigate this issue?

A4: To mitigate this issue, you can take the following steps:

Disable overflow checking: By default, overflow checking is not enabled in release mode. However, you can override this by setting RUSTFLAGS="-C overflow-checks" or overflow-checks = true in the Cargo.toml profile.
Upgrade to a patched version: The advisory recommends upgrading to a version of the ring crate that is greater than or equal to 0.17.12.
Use a secure random number generator: To prevent the panic in the QUIC protocol, you can use a secure random number generator to generate the HeaderProtectionKey.

Q5: What are the recommended versions of the `ring` crate?

A5: The recommended version of the ring crate is >=0.17.12.

Q6: What are the affected versions of the `ring` crate?

A6: The affected versions of the ring crate are 0.17.8.

Q7: What are the patched versions of the `ring` crate?

A7: The patched versions of the ring crate are >=0.17.12.

Q8: Is this advisory related to any other security issues?

A8: No, this advisory is not related to any other security issues. However, it's always a good idea to keep your dependencies up to date and to monitor the RustSec advisories for any potential security issues.

Q9: Where can I find more information about this advisory?

A9: For additional details on this advisory, please refer to the advisory page.

Q10: What is the CVE for this advisory?

A10: The CVE for this advisory is not available.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the RUSTSEC-2025-0009 advisory highlights a potential security issue in the ring crate. By understanding the impact and mitigation strategies outlined in this Q&A article, you can ensure the security and integrity of your Rust applications.