Cyber Resilience

CVE-2026-33063

Memory Safety in Free5Gc ≤ 1.4.2

Published
20 March 2026
Modified
27 March 2026
Patch / advisory
CVSS Score v4 8.7
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X
EPSS Score 0.0065 48th percentile
Risk Priority 45 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2026-33063 is a high-severity NULL Pointer Dereference (CWE-476) vulnerability in Free5Gc Free5Gc. Its CVSS base score is 8.7 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Endpoint Denial of Service (T1499); ranked at the 48th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to SA-11 (Developer Testing and Evaluation) and SA-15 (Development Process, Standards, and Tools) — see the control section below for these in your framework.

Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary

Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.

CVE-2026-33063 is an Improper Null Check vulnerability (CWE-476) in the AUSF component of free5GC, an open-source 5G core network implementation. AUSF versions prior to 1.4.2 are affected, including all deployments of free5GC v4.0.1 that utilize the UE authentication service at the `/nausf-auth/v1/ue-authentications` endpoint. The flaw occurs in the `GetSupiFromSuciSupiMap` function, which attempts an interface conversion from `interface{}` to `*context.SuciSupiMap` without checking if the underlying `SuciSupiMap` value is nil, triggering a panic with the error "interface conversion: interface {} is nil, not *context.SuciSupiMap" and leading to denial of service.

A remote, unauthenticated attacker can exploit this vulnerability by sending a crafted UE authentication request to the affected endpoint, causing the AUSF service to panic and crash. This results in a complete denial of service for the AUSF authentication service, disrupting 5G core network authentication operations. The vulnerability carries a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.5 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H), reflecting its high availability impact and ease of remote exploitation without privileges or user interaction.

free5GC AUSF version 1.4.2 patches the issue by addressing the nil check in the interface conversion. No direct application-level workaround exists, though restricting access to the AUSF API to trusted sources is recommended as a mitigation. Key resources include the patching commit (https://github.com/free5gc/ausf/commit/3b9ac4403c2756dc89a5ed3cdcefe688458588aa), pull request (https://github.com/free5gc/ausf/pull/52), issue discussion (https://github.com/free5gc/free5gc/issues/778), and GitHub security advisory (https://github.com/free5gc/free5gc/security/advisories/GHSA-4jrw-92fg-4jwx).

OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

free5GC is an open source 5G core network. free5GC AUSF prior to version 1.4.2 has is an Improper Null Check vulnerability leading to Denial of Service. All deployments of free5GC v4.0.1 using the AUSF UE authentication service (`/nausf-auth/v1/ue-authentications` endpoint) are…

more

affected. A remote attacker can cause the AUSF service to panic and crash by sending a crafted UE authentication request that triggers a nil interface conversion in the `GetSupiFromSuciSupiMap` function. This results in complete denial of service for the AUSF authentication service. The `GetSupiFromSuciSupiMap` function attempts to perform an interface conversion from `interface{}` to `*context.SuciSupiMap` without checking if the underlying value is nil. When `SuciSupiMap` is nil, the code panics with "interface conversion: interface {} is nil, not *context.SuciSupiMap". free5GC AUSF version 1.4.2 patches the issue. There is no direct workaround at the application level. The recommendation is to apply the provided patch or restrict access to the AUSF API to trusted sources only.

CWE(s)

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1499 Endpoint Denial of Service Impact
Adversaries may perform Endpoint Denial of Service (DoS) attacks to degrade or block the availability of services to users.
T1499.004 Application or System Exploitation Impact
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities that can cause an application or system to crash and deny availability to users.
T1489 Service Stop Impact
Adversaries may stop or disable services on a system to render those services unavailable to legitimate users.
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2026-44323Same product: Free5Gc Free5Gc
CVE-2026-44322Same product: Free5Gc Free5Gc
CVE-2026-44317Same product: Free5Gc Free5Gc
CVE-2026-44316Same product: Free5Gc Free5Gc
CVE-2026-40249Same product: Free5Gc Free5Gc
CVE-2026-1975Same product: Free5Gc Free5Gc
CVE-2026-1976Same product: Free5Gc Free5Gc
CVE-2026-1973Same product: Free5Gc Free5Gc
CVE-2026-1682Same product: Free5Gc Free5Gc
CVE-2026-44328Same product: Free5Gc Free5Gc

Affected Assets

free5gc
free5gc
≤ 1.4.2

Mitigating Controls

Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI

Developer testing and evaluation (including static analysis) directly finds null-dereference bugs before deployment.

Documented development standards and tools can enforce null-safety rules and safe pointer usage.

Engineering principles can mandate defensive coding such as explicit null checks before dereference.

Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

PR.PS-06 mostly match
prevents

Secure SDLC practices (static analysis, code review, safe coding standards) directly prevent NULL dereference bugs during development.

Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

finds

Security testing can detect NULL dereference defects before release.

prevents

Secure SDLC mandates defensive coding practices that can prevent NULL dereferences.

prevents

Application security requirements can specify input validation and pointer-safety rules.

prevents

Secure architecture principles encourage defensive design that avoids unsafe pointer use.

prevents

Secure coding standards directly require NULL-pointer checks and safe dereference patterns.

References