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CVE-2019-20174

auth0-lock vulnerable to XSS via unsanitized placeholder property

6.1 MediumFix available

CVE-2019-20174 is a medium vulnerability (CVSS 6.1) in Auth0 Lock, published January 31, 2020. No source lists public exploit code. EPSS puts the chance of exploitation in the next 30 days at 0.72%, the 54th percentile. Fixed in auth0-lock 11.21.0.

Auth0 Lock before 11.21.0 allows XSS when additionalSignUpFields is used with an untrusted placeholder.

Attack profile

How easy it is to exploit

Attack vector
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges needed
None
User interaction
Required

What an attacker can affect

Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
Low
Availability
None

Exploit likelihood

0.72%Up 0.1 points since Apr 14, 2021
90%50%10%1%

What each source reports

NVD Score used 6.1

Auth0 Lock before 11.21.0 allows XSS when additionalSignUpFields is used with an untrusted placeholder.

Record
CVE-2019-20174
CVSS 3.1
6.1 MediumCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N
CVSS 2.0
4.3 MediumAV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:N/I:P/A:N
Weakness
CWE-79
Updated
2026-11-02
CVE List No score

Auth0 Lock before 11.21.0 allows XSS when additionalSignUpFields is used with an untrusted placeholder.

Record
CVE-2019-20174
Updated
2026-11-02
EUVDEUVD-2020-0280 No score

Auth0 Lock before 11.21.0 allows XSS when additionalSignUpFields is used with an untrusted placeholder.

Record
EUVD-2020-0280
Updated
2026-11-03
GitHub AdvisoriesGHSA-w2pf-g6r8-pg22 6.1

auth0-lock vulnerable to XSS via unsanitized placeholder property

Overview

Auth0 Lock version 11.20.4 and earlier did not properly sanitize the generated HTML code. Customers using the additionalSignUpFields customization option to add a checkbox to the sign-up dialog that are passing a placeholder property obtained from an untrusted source (e.g. a query parameter) could allow cross-site scripting (XSS) on their signup pages.

Am I affected?

You are affected by this vulnerability if all of the following conditions apply:

  • You are using Auth0 Lock version 11.20.4 or earlier.
  • You pass additionalSignUpFields as options when initializing Lock which includes a field of type checkbox whose placeholder value is obtained from an untrusted source.

An example of a vulnerable snippet is the following where the placeholder value is partially user-controlled by the name query parameter:

<script>
    var params = new URLSearchParams(window.location.search);
    var options = {
        auth: {
            redirectUrl: 'http://localhost:12345/callback',
            responseType: 'code',
            params: {
                scope: 'openid email',
            },
        },
        additionalSignUpFields: [{
            name: 'agree',
            type: 'checkbox',
            placeholder: "I agree to Terms and Conditions for " + params.get('name'),
        }],
    };
    var lock = new Auth0Lock('<CLIENT_ID>', '<TENANT_NAME>.auth0.com', options);
    lock.show({
        allowShowPassword: true,
        initialScreen: 'signUp',
    });
</script>

How to fix that?

Developers using Auth0’s signin solution Lock need to upgrade to version 11.21.0 or later. Version 11.21.0 introduces two changes:

  1. The existing placeholder property is now treated as plain text to mitigate the problem.
  2. A new placeholderHTML property is introduced that indicates the level of control it provides and that it should be only supplied from trusted sources.

Will this update impact my users?

This fix patches the Auth0 Lock widget and may require changes in application code, but it will not impact your users, their current state, or any existing sessions.

Developers using the placeholder property with HTML content from a trusted source should start using the placeholderHTML property to continue providing the same user experience.

Record
GHSA-w2pf-g6r8-pg22
CVSS 3.1
6.1 MediumCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N
Weakness
CWE-79
Updated
2026-11-02
OSV 6.1

Auth0 Lock before 11.21.0 allows XSS when additionalSignUpFields is used with an untrusted placeholder.

Record
CVE-2019-20174
CVSS 3.1
6.1 MediumCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N
Updated
2026-11-02
OSVGHSA-w2pf-g6r8-pg22 6.1

auth0-lock vulnerable to XSS via unsanitized placeholder property

Overview

Auth0 Lock version 11.20.4 and earlier did not properly sanitize the generated HTML code. Customers using the additionalSignUpFields customization option to add a checkbox to the sign-up dialog that are passing a placeholder property obtained from an untrusted source (e.g. a query parameter) could allow cross-site scripting (XSS) on their signup pages.

Am I affected?

You are affected by this vulnerability if all of the following conditions apply:

  • You are using Auth0 Lock version 11.20.4 or earlier.
  • You pass additionalSignUpFields as options when initializing Lock which includes a field of type checkbox whose placeholder value is obtained from an untrusted source.

An example of a vulnerable snippet is the following where the placeholder value is partially user-controlled by the name query parameter:

<script>
    var params = new URLSearchParams(window.location.search);
    var options = {
        auth: {
            redirectUrl: 'http://localhost:12345/callback',
            responseType: 'code',
            params: {
                scope: 'openid email',
            },
        },
        additionalSignUpFields: [{
            name: 'agree',
            type: 'checkbox',
            placeholder: "I agree to Terms and Conditions for " + params.get('name'),
        }],
    };
    var lock = new Auth0Lock('<CLIENT_ID>', '<TENANT_NAME>.auth0.com', options);
    lock.show({
        allowShowPassword: true,
        initialScreen: 'signUp',
    });
</script>

How to fix that?

Developers using Auth0’s signin solution Lock need to upgrade to version 11.21.0 or later. Version 11.21.0 introduces two changes:

  1. The existing placeholder property is now treated as plain text to mitigate the problem.
  2. A new placeholderHTML property is introduced that indicates the level of control it provides and that it should be only supplied from trusted sources.

Will this update impact my users?

This fix patches the Auth0 Lock widget and may require changes in application code, but it will not impact your users, their current state, or any existing sessions.

Developers using the placeholder property with HTML content from a trusted source should start using the placeholderHTML property to continue providing the same user experience.

Record
GHSA-w2pf-g6r8-pg22
CVSS 3.1
6.1 MediumCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N
Weakness
CWE-79
Updated
2026-11-02

Affected products

Affected packages

Affected packages
PackageAffectedFixed
auth0-lock
npm
before 11.21.0
11.21.0

History

History
WhenChangedSources
2026-11-03aliasesEUVD
2026-11-02createdCVE List, GitHub Advisories, NVD, OSV

References

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