PatchSiren cyber security CVE debrief
CVE-2025-8916 Siemens CVE debrief
CVE-2025-8916 is an availability issue in Bouncy Castle Java and BCPKIX FIPS certificate-path review code. The supplied advisory describes allocation without limits or throttling that can lead to excessive allocation in PKIXCertPathReviewer-related classes. The stated impact is low-severity availability loss, with a CVSS v3.1 vector of AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L and a base score of 5.3. The advisory was first published on 2026-05-12 UTC and republished/modified on 2026-05-14 UTC in the supplied CISA CSAF source.
- Vendor
- Siemens
- Product
- SIMATIC CN 4100
- CVSS
- MEDIUM 5.3
- CISA KEV
- Not listed in stored evidence
- Original CVE published
- 2026-05-12
- Original CVE updated
- 2026-05-14
- Advisory published
- 2026-05-12
- Advisory updated
- 2026-05-14
Who should care
Teams that use Bouncy Castle Java bcprov/bcpkix or BCPKIX FIPS in applications that process certificate paths, especially where untrusted input can reach the affected code. Security, platform, and dependency-management teams should also care because the affected components are library modules that may be pulled in transitively.
Technical summary
The advisory links CVE-2025-8916 to resource exhaustion caused by unbounded allocation in PKIXCertPathReviewer code paths. The affected ranges listed in the source are BC Java 1.44 through 1.78 and BCPKIX FIPS 1.0.0 through 1.0.7 and 2.0.0 through 2.0.7. The source references the relevant files in the bc-java repository under pkix/src/main/java/org/bouncycastle/pkix/jcajce/PKIXCertPathReviewer.java and prov/src/main/java/org/bouncycastle/x509/PKIXCertPathReviewer.java. The supplied advisory rates confidentiality and integrity impact as none and availability impact as low.
Defensive priority
Medium. The CVSS score is moderate, but the issue is network-reachable in the supplied vector and affects security-sensitive cryptographic library code. Prioritize remediation if the library is present in externally exposed services or certificate-validation workflows.
Recommended defensive actions
- Update affected deployments to V5.0 or later, as stated in the supplied remediation guidance.
- Inventory all direct and transitive uses of Bouncy Castle Java bcprov/bcpkix and BCPKIX FIPS across applications and services.
- Confirm whether any applications still use the affected version ranges: BC Java 1.44-1.78, BCPKIX FIPS 1.0.0-1.0.7, or 2.0.0-2.0.7.
- Treat certificate-path review and related validation endpoints as higher-priority remediation targets if they accept untrusted input.
- After updating, validate build manifests and dependency locks to prevent reintroduction of affected versions.
Evidence notes
The source corpus is internally inconsistent: the advisory metadata names a Siemens SIMATIC CN 4100 product context, but the vulnerability description and affected files clearly refer to Bouncy Castle Java and BCPKIX FIPS modules. This debrief follows the vulnerability text, file references, version ranges, CVSS vector, and remediation provided in the supplied CSAF advisory. No KEV entry is listed in the provided enrichment.
Sources and references
Verified primary and authoritative sources
-
CVE-2025-8916 CVE Program record
Publisher, destination, and source semantics verified
URL: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2025-8916
CVE Program - Official CVE Program record with source-provided CVE metadata.
-
CVE-2025-8916 NVD vulnerability detail
Publisher, destination, and source semantics verified
URL: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-8916
NIST National Vulnerability Database - Official NIST NVD detail page and source-specific vulnerability assessment.
Supplemental references
-
Source item URL
Unverified legacy reference
URL: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/cisagov/CSAF/develop/csaf_files/OT/white/2026/icsa-26-134-10.json
cisa_csaf
-
Source reference
Unverified legacy reference
URL: https://cert-portal.siemens.com/productcert/csaf/ssa-032379.json
Reference
-
Source reference
Unverified legacy reference
URL: https://cert-portal.siemens.com/productcert/html/ssa-032379.html
Reference
-
Source reference
Unverified legacy reference
URL: https://www.cisa.gov/news-events/ics-advisories/icsa-26-134-10
Reference
-
Source reference
Unverified legacy reference
URL: https://www.cisa.gov/news-events/ics-alerts/ics-alert-10-301-01
Reference
-
Source reference
Unverified legacy reference
URL: https://www.cisa.gov/resources-tools/resources/ics-recommended-practices
Reference
-
Source reference
Unverified legacy reference
URL: https://www.cisa.gov/topics/industrial-control-systems
Reference
-
Source reference
Unverified legacy reference
URL: https://www.cisa.gov/sites/default/files/recommended_practices/NCCIC_ICS-CERT_Defense_in_Depth_2016_S508C.pdf
Reference
Methodology and review provenance
AI-assisted synthesis based on stored public vulnerability evidence. System validation, approval state, and publication status do not by themselves establish human review of this revision. PatchSiren helps prioritize defensive review and does not prove exposure or remediation on any system.