Sign in
Deutsch English Español Polski
Medium

Observable Discrepancy in BouncyCastle

  • Disclosed: 13.05.2022
  • Updated: 11.10.2026 11:20

BouncyCastle TLS prior to version 1.0.3, when configured to use the JCE (Java Cryptography Extension) for cryptographic functions, provides a weak Bleichenbacher oracle when any TLS cipher suite using RSA key exchange is negotiated. An attacker can recover the private key from a vulnerable application. This vulnerability is referred to as "ROBOT."

Affected software

Click a technology to see all vulnerabilities affecting it.

PlatformPackageVulnerable versionsFixed in
Java / Kotlin (Maven) org.bouncycastle:bcprov-jdk15on < 1.0.3 1.0.3

References

CVSS score 5.9/10
CVSS vector
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
Weakness (CWE)
CWE-203
Platform
Java / Kotlin (Maven)
Package
org.bouncycastle:bcprov-jdk15on
Disclosed
13.05.2022
Updated
11.10.2026 11:20

Sources and licenses

OSV / GitHub Advisory Database - GHSA-wrwf-pmmj-w989 - CC BY 4.0

Vulnerability history: org.bouncycastle:bcprov-jdk15on

All published vulnerabilities of this package (Java / Kotlin (Maven)), newest first. Shows whether this is a one-off slip or a package that needs watching.

All (25) in the archive
Total entries
25
First → latest
10.2018 04.2026
Without a fix
3
Exploited in attacks
0

Severity breakdown

  • Critical 2
  • High 8
  • Medium 14
  • Low 1

Disclosures per year

Severity:
  1. Bouncy Castle for Java GOST 28147 CTR mode reuses keystream after 255 blocks
    Critical · 7.5 CVE-2025-14813 <= 1.7.0 no fix
  2. Observable Discrepancy in BouncyCastle this entry
    Medium · 5.9 CVE-2017-13098 < 1.0.3 1.0.3
  3. Logic error in Legion of the Bouncy Castle BC Java
    High · 8.1 CVE-2020-28052 >= 1.65, < 1.67 1.67
  4. In Bouncy Castle JCE Provider the DHIES implementation allowed the use of ECB mode
    High · 7.4 CVE-2016-1000344 < 1.56 1.56
  5. In Bouncy Castle JCE Provider the ECIES implementation allowed the use of ECB mode
    High · 7.4 CVE-2016-1000352 < 1.56 1.56
  6. In Bouncy Castle JCE Provider the DSA key pair generator generates a weak private key if used with default values
    High · 7.5 CVE-2016-1000343 < 1.56 1.56
  7. In Bouncy Castle JCE Provider ECDSA does not fully validate ASN.1 encoding of signature on verification
    High · 7.5 CVE-2016-1000342 < 1.56 1.56
  8. The Bouncy Castle JCE Provider carry a propagation bug
    High · 7.5 CVE-2016-1000340 >= 1.51, < 1.56 1.56
  9. In Bouncy Castle JCE Provider it is possible to inject extra elements in the sequence making up the signature and still have it validate
    High · 7.5 CVE-2016-1000338 >= 1.38, < 1.56 1.56
  10. Deserialization of Untrusted Data in Bouncy castle
    Critical · 9.8 CVE-2018-1000613 >= 1.57, < 1.60 1.60
  11. Bouncy Castle has a flaw in the Low-level interface to RSA key pair generator
    High · 7.5 CVE-2018-1000180 < 1.60 1.60

Know which vulnerabilities affect your application

With the DockRay integration and software inventory enabled, DockRay checks reported component versions against known vulnerabilities and notifies you about confirmed matches. Coverage depends on the supported technology and available advisory data.

Connect your application
DockRay newsletter

Application security in your inbox

Important vulnerabilities, actionable guidance and practical advice for your applications. Choose your technologies and follow what matters to your project.

  • A daily digest of new vulnerabilities, critical ones included.
  • Notifications about important updates.
  • Practical advice on application security and monitoring.

Leave empty to receive updates for every technology.

Privacy policy

Free to subscribe. Unsubscribe with one click in any email.