---
id: CVE-2026-11790
title: >-
  389-ds-base: 389-ds-base: pbkdf2 password storage plugin unbounded iteration
  count denial of service
summary: >-
  A flaw was found in 389 Directory Server. The PBKDF2-SHA256 password storage
  plugin does not enforce an upper bound on the iteration count extracted from
  stored password hashes. A privileged attacker who can modify a user's password
  hash…
severity: medium
cvss: 4.9
cvssVector: 'CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H'
cvssSource: cna
cwe:
  - CWE-400
vendor: Red Hat
product: 'redhat-ds:11/389-ds-base'
affected:
  - 'redhat-ds:11/389-ds-base (all versions)'
  - 'redhat-ds:12/389-ds-base (all versions)'
  - 389-ds-base (all versions)
  - 389-ds-base (all versions)
  - 389-ds-base
  - 389-ds-base (all versions)
  - 389-ds-base (all versions)
  - 389-ds-base (all versions)
ssvc:
  exploitation: none
  automatable: 'no'
  technicalImpact: partial
  timestamp: '2026-06-09T13:28:46.679763Z'
published: '2026-06-09'
updated: '2026-11-05'
sourceUpdated: '2026-11-05T16:22:39.112Z'
source: CVEORG
sourceUrl: 'https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-11790'
references:
  - url: 'https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-11790'
  - url: 'https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2485421'
    label: RHBZ#2485421
tags:
  - cve.org
epss: 0.00291
epssPercentile: 0.21815
ingestedAt: '2026-11-05T22:38:31.344Z'
---

## Overview

A flaw was found in 389 Directory Server. The PBKDF2-SHA256 password storage plugin does not enforce an upper bound on the iteration count extracted from stored password hashes. A privileged attacker who can modify a user's password hash can cause excessive CPU consumption during authentication, resulting in denial of service.

## Affected

- `redhat-ds:11/389-ds-base (all versions)`
- `redhat-ds:12/389-ds-base (all versions)`
- `389-ds-base (all versions)`
- `389-ds-base (all versions)`
- `389-ds-base`
- `389-ds-base (all versions)`
- `389-ds-base (all versions)`
- `389-ds-base (all versions)`

## Remediation

Refer to the linked advisories for vendor-supplied fixes and affected version ranges.

### Workarounds

Disable nsslapd-allow-hashed-passwords (default: off) to prevent non-DM users from setting pre-hashed passwords. Restrict Directory Manager credentials; limit DM access to management networks and audit DM operations via nsslapd-auditlog. Monitor for suspicious userPassword modifications (unusual hash schemes or large base64 payloads). Monitor for unusually long bind operations to the same account, which may indicate a poisoned PBKDF2 hash.