Reportskem-24

MORNING-Scabbard (kem-24)

CandidateMORNING-Scabbard
FamilyLattice (Module-LWR)
ScopeReference implementation, scabbard128 and scabbard256
SeverityHigh
DiscoveryTrivial
ExploitationNot yet demonstrated
Date2026-09-21
CreditMarkku-Juhani O. Saarinen markku-juhani.saarinen@tuni.fi, with AI assistance
ArchiveMORNING-Scabbard.zip (SHA-256: fdb6749116bddbb8a86074b9ab6f5f55d37540b92e3964906dede0b09c7faf4b)

Encryption omits the specified rounding constant

Algorithm 10 forms encryption component u by adding the constant h before the q-to-p right shift, implementing nearest rounding. The scabbard128 and scabbard256 reference implementations omit +h and truncate instead. The scabbard512 source contains the specified addition and provides a direct comparison.

Re-encryption repeats the same altered operation, so functional KATs and the Fujisaki-Okamoto equality check remain internally consistent. Nevertheless, the ciphertext distribution and decryption-noise law differ from those used by the specification's correctness, decryption-failure, and IND-CPA analyses.

This is a confirmed implementation/specification mismatch in two of three parameter sets. No concrete distinguisher or key-recovery attack has yet been derived from the changed distribution, so the report does not claim a complete confidentiality break.