eMudhra shares crash 14% today, down 34% in 5 days: Here's why the stock is falling

eMudhra shares fell 13.62% after a security flaw affected certificates in its global TLS business. The incident has raised reputational concerns despite no data breach or impact on Indian services.

Shares of eMudhra Ltd extended their sharp decline on Thursday, October 22, falling 13.62% to Rs 373.15 at 10.20 am, according to the price data. The stock has come under sustained selling pressure over the past few sessions following concerns over a security flaw involving digital certificates used in its global website-security business.

The fall on Thursday follows a steep decline in the previous sessions. The stock has dropped 30.85% over the past five trading days, translating into a loss of Rs 166.45. Over the past month, eMudhra shares have fallen 42.51%, or Rs 276, according to the one-month price snapshot.

The latest decline has brought the stock into focus as investors assess the potential business and reputational implications of a cryptographic security issue affecting eight intermediate certificates used in eMudhra's global Transport Layer Security (TLS) business.

WHY ARE EMUDHRA SHARES FALLING?

The sell-off follows the discovery of a cryptographic flaw affecting eight intermediate Certificate Authorities (CAs) used in eMudhra's global TLS business. The issue relates to weak private keys generated during a key-generation process conducted on April 30, 2025.

An independent security researcher found that the weak keys could potentially be recovered and used to create fraudulent digital certificates for websites. Such certificates could allow an attacker to impersonate a legitimate website on systems that continued to trust the affected certificates.

The issue was reported to major browser root programmes, including those operated by Apple, Google, Microsoft and Mozilla. The development raised concerns about the integrity of the affected certificates and the potential reputational implications for eMudhra, whose business centres on digital identity, authentication and trust services.

BROWSER OPERATORS TAKE ACTION

The incident prompted action from browser operators to prevent the affected certificates from being trusted. The weak keys were linked to a key-generation ceremony conducted in April 2025, with the company saying a flaw in the process created a second set of weak keys alongside the original strong keys.

The company is investigating the root cause and working on remediation. The incident has also put the certificate issuance and validation process under scrutiny, given the role digital certificates play in establishing secure connections between websites and users.

EMUDHRA SAYS NO DATA BREACH

eMudhra has said its infrastructure was not compromised and no data was breached. It has also clarified that the incident does not affect its Indian Digital Signature Certificate (DSC) and eSign businesses, which operate on infrastructure separate from its global TLS operations.

The company said the affected global TLS business accounts for around 1% of its revenue. However, it acknowledged that the incident could carry reputational risks that are difficult to quantify.

The scale of the stock's decline shows the pressure on investor sentiment. eMudhra shares were down 13.62% in the latest screenshot, while the five-day and one-month views showed declines of 30.85% and 42.51%, respectively.

Investors will watch for further disclosures on the root-cause investigation, replacement of affected certificates and any additional measures required by browser operators. They will also look for clarity on the potential reputational and business implications.

While the company has said its Indian DSC and eSign operations remain unaffected and the global TLS business contributes around 1% of revenue, the longer-term impact will depend on the outcome of the investigation, remediation measures and the response of customers and browser operators.