CVE-2026-18796
Received Received - Intake

Weak Encryption in nRF5340 XIP via QSPI Flash

Publication date: 2026-09-07

Last updated on: 2026-09-07

Assigner: 30a5e7fb-040d-440a-8cdf-a4a2068ce72e

Description
Any application that uses external QSPI flash for encrypted XIP on nRF5340 and relies on that encryption for confidentiality and/or integrity of the externally stored code. No specific nRF Connect SDK version is the root cause; the weakness is in the on-the-fly decryption scheme.

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Meta Information

Published
2026-09-07
Last Modified
2026-09-07
Generated
2026-09-07
AI Q&A
2026-09-07
EPSS Evaluated
N/A
NVD
CVE-2026-18796
EUVD
EUVD-2026-72300

Affected Vendors & Products

Currently, no data is known.

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Exploitability

CWE
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KEV
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CWE ID Description
CWE-1342 The processor does not properly clear microarchitectural state after incorrect microcode assists or speculative execution, resulting in transient execution.

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Executive Summary

This vulnerability affects applications using external QSPI flash for encrypted execute-in-place (XIP) on nRF5340 devices. The weakness lies in the on-the-fly decryption scheme, which may fail to ensure confidentiality and integrity of externally stored code.

Detection Guidance

This vulnerability affects systems using nRF5340 with external QSPI flash for encrypted XIP. Detection requires checking if your device uses this configuration and if the on-the-fly decryption scheme is implemented. No specific commands are provided in the context.

Impact Analysis

If exploited, this vulnerability could allow unauthorized access to sensitive code or data stored in external QSPI flash. Attackers might read, modify, or execute malicious code, leading to potential system compromise or data breaches.

Compliance Impact

This vulnerability affects compliance with GDPR and HIPAA by potentially compromising the confidentiality and integrity of externally stored code on nRF5340 devices. Since the weakness is in the on-the-fly decryption scheme for QSPI flash, unauthorized access or tampering could lead to data breaches or unauthorized code execution, violating data protection requirements under these regulations.

Mitigation Strategies

Immediate mitigation steps include reviewing the nRF Connect SDK implementation for the decryption scheme, ensuring encryption is properly configured, and updating firmware if patches are available. No specific commands or patches are mentioned in the context.

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