CVE-2023-33192
Improper handling of NTS cookie length that could crash the ntpd-rs server
ntpd-rs is an NTP implementation written in Rust. ntpd-rs does not validate the length of NTS cookies in received NTP packets to the server. An attacker can crash the server by sending a specially crafted NTP packet containing a cookie shorter than what the server expects. The server also crashes when it is not configured to handle NTS packets. The issue was caused by improper slice indexing. The indexing operations were replaced by safer alternatives that do not crash the ntpd-rs server process but instead properly handle the error condition. A patch was released in version 0.3.3.
Attack profile
How easy it is to exploit
- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges needed
- None
- User interaction
- None
What an attacker can affect
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- High
Exploit likelihood
What each source reports
CVE List Score used
Improper handling of NTS cookie length that could crash the ntpd-rs server
ntpd-rs is an NTP implementation written in Rust. ntpd-rs does not validate the length of NTS cookies in received NTP packets to the server. An attacker can crash the server by sending a specially crafted NTP packet containing a cookie shorter than what the server expects. The server also crashes when it is not configured to handle NTS packets. The issue was caused by improper slice indexing. The indexing operations were replaced by safer alternatives that do not crash the ntpd-rs server process but instead properly handle the error condition. A patch was released in version 0.3.3.
- Record
CVE-2023-33192- CVSS 3.1
- 7.5 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H - Weakness
- CWE-130
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
EUVDEUVD-2023-1616
ntpd-rs is an NTP implementation written in Rust. ntpd-rs does not validate the length of NTS cookies in received NTP packets to the server. An attacker can crash the server by sending a specially crafted NTP packet containing a cookie shorter than what the server expects. The server also crashes when it is not configured to handle NTS packets. The issue was caused by improper slice indexing. The indexing operations were replaced by safer alternatives that do not crash the ntpd-rs server process but instead properly handle the error condition. A patch was released in version 0.3.3.
- Record
EUVD-2023-1616- CVSS 3.1
- 7.5 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H - Updated
- 2026-11-03
GitHub AdvisoriesGHSA-qwhm-h7v3-mrjx
Improper handling of NTS cookie length that could crash the ntpd-rs server
Impact
ntpd-rs does not validate the length of NTS cookies in received NTP packets to the server. An attacker can crash the server by sending a specially crafted NTP packet containing a cookie shorter than what the server expects. The server also crashes when it is not configured to handle NTS packets.
ntpd-rs running purely as an ntp client is not affected.
Patches
The issue was caused by improper slice indexing. The indexing operations were replaced by safer alternatives that do not crash the ntpd-rs server process but instead properly handle the error condition. A patch was released in version 0.3.3
Workarounds
ntpd-rs running purely as an ntp client is not affected. By default, ntpd-rs packages are not configured to run as a server.
For machines where serving the time is required, there is no known workaround. Users are recommended to upgrade ntpd-rs as soon as possible.
References
https://github.com/pendulum-project/ntpd-rs/pull/752
We would like to thank @mlichvar for identifying this issue
- Record
GHSA-qwhm-h7v3-mrjx- CVSS 3.1
- 7.5 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H - Weakness
- CWE-130
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
NVD
ntpd-rs is an NTP implementation written in Rust. ntpd-rs does not validate the length of NTS cookies in received NTP packets to the server. An attacker can crash the server by sending a specially crafted NTP packet containing a cookie shorter than what the server expects. The server also crashes when it is not configured to handle NTS packets. The issue was caused by improper slice indexing. The indexing operations were replaced by safer alternatives that do not crash the ntpd-rs server process but instead properly handle the error condition. A patch was released in version 0.3.3.
- Record
CVE-2023-33192- CVSS 3.1
- 7.5 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H - Weakness
- CWE-130
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSV
Improper handling of NTS cookie length that could crash the ntpd-rs server
ntpd-rs is an NTP implementation written in Rust. ntpd-rs does not validate the length of NTS cookies in received NTP packets to the server. An attacker can crash the server by sending a specially crafted NTP packet containing a cookie shorter than what the server expects. The server also crashes when it is not configured to handle NTS packets. The issue was caused by improper slice indexing. The indexing operations were replaced by safer alternatives that do not crash the ntpd-rs server process but instead properly handle the error condition. A patch was released in version 0.3.3.
- Record
CVE-2023-33192- CVSS 3.1
- 7.5 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H - Weakness
- CWE-130
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSVGHSA-qwhm-h7v3-mrjx
Improper handling of NTS cookie length that could crash the ntpd-rs server
Impact
ntpd-rs does not validate the length of NTS cookies in received NTP packets to the server. An attacker can crash the server by sending a specially crafted NTP packet containing a cookie shorter than what the server expects. The server also crashes when it is not configured to handle NTS packets.
ntpd-rs running purely as an ntp client is not affected.
Patches
The issue was caused by improper slice indexing. The indexing operations were replaced by safer alternatives that do not crash the ntpd-rs server process but instead properly handle the error condition. A patch was released in version 0.3.3
Workarounds
ntpd-rs running purely as an ntp client is not affected. By default, ntpd-rs packages are not configured to run as a server.
For machines where serving the time is required, there is no known workaround. Users are recommended to upgrade ntpd-rs as soon as possible.
References
https://github.com/pendulum-project/ntpd-rs/pull/752
We would like to thank @mlichvar for identifying this issue
- Record
GHSA-qwhm-h7v3-mrjx- CVSS 3.1
- 7.5 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H - Weakness
- CWE-130
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
Affected products
Affected packages
| Package | Affected | Fixed |
|---|---|---|
ntpdcrates.io |
0.3.0 up to 0.3.3 | 0.3.3 |
History
| Recorded | Changed | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| aliases | EUVD | |
| first indexed | CVE List, GitHub Advisories, NVD, OSV |
Dates are when Every CVE recorded each change. Upstream dates may differ.
In short
CVE-2023-33192 is a high vulnerability (CVSS 7.5) in Pendulum-project Ntpd-rs, published May 25, 2023. No source lists public exploit code. EPSS puts the chance of exploitation in the next 30 days at 0.71%, the 53rd percentile. Fixed in ntpd 0.3.3.
References
github.com/pendulum-project/ntpd-rs/security/advisories/GHSA-qwhm-h7v3-mrjx
nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-33192