HOMEVULNERABILITIESCVE-2019-15809
MEDIUM

CVE-2019-15809

CWE-203Published: October 3, 2019· Updated: Jun 17, 2026

4.7
CVSS v3.1

Official Description

Smart cards from the Athena SCS manufacturer, based on the Atmel Toolbox 00.03.11.05 and the AT90SC chip, contain a timing side channel in ECDSA signature generation. This allows a local attacker, able to measure the duration of hundreds to thousands of signing operations, to compute the private key used. The issue occurs because the Atmel Toolbox 00.03.11.05 contains two versions of ECDSA signature functions, described as fast and secure, but the affected cards chose to use the fast version, which leaks the bit length of the random nonce via timing. This affects Athena IDProtect 010b.0352.0005, Athena IDProtect 010e.1245.0002, Athena IDProtect 0106.0130.0401, Athena IDProtect 010e.1245.0002, Valid S/A IDflex V 010b.0352.0005, SafeNet eToken 4300 010e.1245.0002, TecSec Armored Card 010e.0264.0001, and TecSec Armored Card 108.0264.0001.

NVD Source

Technical Analysis

CVE-2019-15809 requires local access, meaning attackers must already have a foothold on the target system.

Exploitation requires low privileges, which limits the exposure to scenarios where an attacker has already gained initial access.

A successful exploit results in complete confidentiality breach (data exposure), with a CVSS base score of 4.7.

CVSS v3.1 Vector Breakdown

Exploitability
Attack VectorLocal
Attack ComplexityHigh
Privileges Req.Low
User InteractionNone
ScopeUnchanged
Impact
ConfidentialityHigh
IntegrityNone
AvailabilityNone
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N

Affected Vendors & Products

athena-scs1 product(s)
idprotect
cryptsoft1 product(s)
s\/a idflex v
microchip1 product(s)
atmel toolbox
tecsec1 product(s)
armored card
thalesgroup1 product(s)
etoken 4300
Source: NVD CPE · 8 total CPE entries

Exploit & PoC Resources

NO KNOWN EXPLOITNo public exploit confirmed at this time
Exploit-DB
Offensive Security exploit database
GitHub PoC Search
Community PoC repositories
Rapid7 / Metasploit
Metasploit module search
PacketStorm
Security advisories & exploits
NVD Detail
Official NIST entry
MITRE CVE
CVE Program entry
External links open in a new tab. Always verify in a controlled environment before use.

Official Patches & Advisories

ADVISORYhttp://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2019/10/02/2
ADVISORYhttps://csrc.nist.gov/Projects/Cryptographic-Algorithm-Validation-Program/details?source=ECDSA&number=214
ADVISORYhttps://eprint.iacr.org/2011/232.pdf
ADVISORYhttps://minerva.crocs.fi.muni.cz/
ADVISORYhttps://tches.iacr.org/index.php/TCHES/article/view/7337
ADVISORYhttp://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2019/10/02/2
ADVISORYhttps://csrc.nist.gov/Projects/Cryptographic-Algorithm-Validation-Program/details?source=ECDSA&number=214
ADVISORYhttps://eprint.iacr.org/2011/232.pdf
ADVISORYhttps://minerva.crocs.fi.muni.cz/
ADVISORYhttps://tches.iacr.org/index.php/TCHES/article/view/7337

All References (12)

→
http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2019/10/02/2Mailing List · Third Party Advisory
→
https://csrc.nist.gov/Projects/Cryptographic-Algorithm-Validation-Program/details?source=ECDSA&number=214Third Party Advisory · US Government Resource
→
https://eprint.iacr.org/2011/232.pdfTechnical Description · Third Party Advisory
→
https://minerva.crocs.fi.muni.cz/Exploit · Third Party Advisory
→
https://tches.iacr.org/index.php/TCHES/article/view/7337Technical Description · Third Party Advisory
→
https://www.ssi.gouv.fr/certification_cc/bibliotheque-cryptographique-atmel-toolbox-00-03-11-05/Product
→
http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2019/10/02/2Mailing List · Third Party Advisory
→
https://csrc.nist.gov/Projects/Cryptographic-Algorithm-Validation-Program/details?source=ECDSA&number=214Third Party Advisory · US Government Resource
→
https://eprint.iacr.org/2011/232.pdfTechnical Description · Third Party Advisory
→
https://minerva.crocs.fi.muni.cz/Exploit · Third Party Advisory
→
https://tches.iacr.org/index.php/TCHES/article/view/7337Technical Description · Third Party Advisory
→
https://www.ssi.gouv.fr/certification_cc/bibliotheque-cryptographique-atmel-toolbox-00-03-11-05/Product

Quick Facts

CVE IDCVE-2019-15809
CVSS Score4.7 / 10
SeverityMEDIUM
WeaknessCWE-203
CISA KEVNo
Affected5 vendor(s)
PublishedOct 3, 2019

Related CVEs (CWE-203)

CVE-2024-25714
9.8
CVE-2023-40756
9.8
CVE-2024-23771
9.8
CVE-2018-1000884
9.8
CVE-2025-27667
9.8
CVE-2019-25337
9.8

Recommended Actions

  • →Apply vendor patches immediately
  • →Monitor CVE-2019-15809 in threat intel feeds
  • →Review IDS/IPS signatures for exploitation attempts
Data sourced from NVD (NIST), CISA KEV, and EPSS (FIRST). Analysis generated by CTIWATCH.COM. CVE data is provided under the NVD usage policy.
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