CVE-2002-20001
The Diffie-Hellman Key Agreement Protocol allows remote attackers (from the client side) to send arbitrary numbers that are actually not public keys, and...
- Published
- Nov 11, 2021
- Updated
- Feb 13, 2025
- Assigning CNA
- mitre
- Evidence observed
- Aug 5, 2026
Primary CVSS
nvd · CVSS 3.1
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:HModerate · next 30 days
- Percentile
- 97.8%
- Model date
- Sep 21, 2026
EPSS is a statistical estimate, not a certainty or a measure of impact. Combine it with CVSS, KEV status, exposure and your environment.
Summary
The Diffie-Hellman Key Agreement Protocol allows remote attackers (from the client side) to send arbitrary numbers that are actually not public keys, and trigger expensive server-side DHE modular-exponentiation calculations, aka a D(HE)at or D(HE)ater attack. The client needs very little CPU resources and network bandwidth. The attack may be more disruptive in cases where a client can require a server to select its largest supported key size. The basic attack scenario is that the client must claim that it can only communicate with DHE, and the server must be configured to allow DHE.
Sources
3- DHEaterPoC
Proof-of-concept denial-of-service tool that enforces Diffie-Hellman ephemeral key exchange over TLS and SSH to saturate server CPU, implementing CVE-2002-20001 for authorized security testing.
- dheaterPoC
Proof-of-concept denial-of-service tool that exploits the DHEat attack (CVE-2002-20001) by enforcing Diffie-Hellman key exchange against TLS and SSH services for defensive testing and mitigation verification.
Responsible use
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