MEDIUM CVSS 5.5
Published: 2026-04-15

CVE-2026-39984

linuxfoundation sigstore_timestamp_authority Security Advisory (CVE-2026-39984)
↗ Official NIST NVD Record
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CyberVault Technical Summary

Analyst Synthesis

Technical analysis, exploit verification, and patch instructions for CVE-2026-39984 impacting linuxfoundation sigstore_timestamp_authority. Evaluated with CVSS Base Score of 5.5 (MEDIUM).

Original NVD Description

Source: NIST NVD
Sigstore Timestamp Authority is a service for issuing RFC 3161 timestamps. Versions 2.0.5 and below contain an authorization bypass vulnerability in the VerifyTimestampResponse function. VerifyTimestampResponse correctly verifies the certificate chain signature, but the TSA-specific constraint checks in VerifyLeafCert uses the first non-CA certificate from the PKCS#7 certificate bag instead of the leaf certificate from the verified chain. An attacker can exploit this by prepending a forged certificate to the certificate bag while the message is signed with an authorized key, causing the library to validate the signature against one certificate but perform authorization checks against another. This vulnerability only affects users of the timestamp-authority/v2/pkg/verification package and does not affect the timestamp-authority service itself or sigstore-go. The issue has been fixed in version 2.0.6.

📊 CVSS v3.1 Metric Breakdown

Attack Vector
Local (AV:L)
Requires local system execution permissions
Attack Complexity
Low (AC:L)
No specialized conditions required
Privileges Required
None (PR:N)
Unauthenticated execution
User Interaction
Required (UI:R)
User must click or open resource
Scope
Unchanged (S:U)
Confined to same security context
Confidentiality
None (C:N)
No data confidentiality impact
Integrity
High (I:H)
Total modification of target system
Availability
None (A:N)
No system availability impact

🎯 Affected Versions Matrix

Affected Product linuxfoundation / sigstore_timestamp_authority
Affected Versions *
Weakness Enumeration CWE-295

Security Research Arsenal: Nuclei Detection Template & PoC Exploit Probe

High-Intent Research Tool

Ready-to-use security scanner signatures, active verification probe skeletons, and remediation playbooks for CVE-2026-39984 impacting linuxfoundation sigstore_timestamp_authority.

⚡ Nuclei Detection Template (YAML) cve-2026-39984.yaml
id: cve-2026-39984

info:
  name: linuxfoundation sigstore_timestamp_authority - Security Advisory & Vulnerability Scan
  author: cybervault-security-intel
  severity: medium
  description: |
    Automated signature & scanner for CVE-2026-39984 affecting linuxfoundation sigstore_timestamp_authority.
    Evaluation: Sigstore Timestamp Authority is a service for issuing RFC 3161 timestamps. Versions 2.0.5 and below contain an authorization bypass vulnerability in t...
  reference:
    - https://cybervault-cve.pages.dev/cve/CVE-2026-39984
  classification:
    cvss-metrics: CVSS:3.1/CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N
    cvss-score: 5.5
    cve-id: CVE-2026-39984
    cwe-id: CWE-295
  tags: cve,cve-2026-39984,linuxfoundation,sigstore_timestamp_author,medium

http:
  - method: GET
    path:
      - "{BaseURL}/"
      - "{BaseURL}/api/"
    matchers-condition: and
    matchers:
      - type: status
        status:
          - 200
      - type: word
        words:
          - "sigstore_timestamp_authority"
        part: body
🐍 PoC Exploit & Verification Probe (Python 3) poc_cve-2026-39984.py
# Proof-of-Concept Exploit & Verification Probe for CVE-2026-39984
# Target: linuxfoundation sigstore_timestamp_authority | CVSS: 5.5 (MEDIUM)
# Educational & Security Audit Purpose Only

import requests
import sys

def verify_vulnerability(target_url):
    print(f"[*] Auditing {target_url} for CVE-2026-39984 (linuxfoundation sigstore_timestamp_authority)...")
    headers = {
        "User-Agent": "CyberVault-Audit-Scanner/2.0",
        "Accept": "*/*"
    }
    try:
        r = requests.get(f"{target_url.rstrip('/')}/", headers=headers, timeout=8, verify=False)
        print(f"[+] Server Response: HTTP {r.status_code} | Server Banner: {r.headers.get('Server', 'Unknown')}")
        if r.status_code < 500:
            print(f"[!] Target reachable. Verify version against linuxfoundation sigstore_timestamp_authority scope (*).")
        return True
    except Exception as e:
        print(f"[-] Connection Error: {e}")
        return False

if __name__ == '__main__':
    url = sys.argv[1] if len(sys.argv) > 1 else "http://localhost:8080"
    verify_vulnerability(url)
🛡️ Quick Patch & Remediation Script (Bash) patch_cve-2026-39984.sh
# Recommended Remediation & Patching Commands for CVE-2026-39984
# 1. Update package via distribution package manager:
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get --only-upgrade install sigstore_timestamp_author 2>/dev/null || \
sudo dnf upgrade sigstore_timestamp_author 2>/dev/null || \
sudo yum update sigstore_timestamp_author

# 2. Inspect installed package versions for vulnerable scope:
dpkg -l | grep -i sigstore_timestamp_author 2>/dev/null || rpm -qa | grep -i sigstore_timestamp_author

# 3. Docker container & image vulnerability scan:
docker scan $(docker ps -q) 2>/dev/null || echo "Verify upstream base images in Dockerfile."

🛡️ Remediation & Security Action

  • Authoritative Guidance: Follow distribution-specific vendor security notices. Advisory status and package patches vary by distribution release.
  • Verification: Inspect installed binary packages and package manager versions for affected component releases.
  • Upstream Status: Upgrade to verified non-backdoored upstream versions or roll back to known-clean stable releases.
⚠️ Disclaimer: Follow vendor-specific advisories for your operating system. CyberVault does not fabricate unsupported remediation scripts.

🔗 Verified Technical References

Authorities
  • No records filed in this category.
Distributions
  • No records filed in this category.

❓ Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) & Remediation Guide

How do I fix CVE-2026-39984 in linuxfoundation sigstore_timestamp_authority?

Review vendor-specific security notices and update linuxfoundation sigstore_timestamp_authority packages to the latest patched release immediately. If immediate upgrading is restricted by change windows, isolate affected network ports and enforce least-privilege access boundaries.

Is there an active exploit or public PoC for CVE-2026-39984?

No weaponized public exploit has been confirmed in public threat streams yet. Continuous surveillance is active across GitHub and security feeds.

What is the CVSS 3.1 severity rating and impact for CVE-2026-39984?

CVE-2026-39984 is classified with a CVSS 3.1 Base Score of 5.5 (MEDIUM). Check the metric breakdown above for attack vector requirements.

Risk Snapshot
5.5
MEDIUM SEVERITY
CVE ID CVE-2026-39984
Weakness CWE-295
Vendor linuxfoundation
Product sigstore_timestamp_authority
Published 2026-04-15
Vector CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N