CVE-2023-48707
Cleartext Storage of Sensitive Information in codeigniter4/shield
CodeIgniter Shield is an authentication and authorization provider for CodeIgniter 4. The secretKey value is an important key for HMAC SHA256 authentication and in affected versions was stored in the database in cleartext form. If a malicious person somehow had access to the data in the database, they could use the key and secretKey for HMAC SHA256 authentication to send requests impersonating that corresponding user. This issue has been addressed in version 1.0.0-beta.8. Users are advised to upgrade. There are no known workarounds for this vulnerability.
Attack profile
How easy it is to exploit
- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- High
- Privileges needed
- High
- User interaction
- None
What an attacker can affect
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- Low
- Availability
- None
Exploit likelihood
What each source reports
CVE List Score used
Cleartext Storage of Sensitive Information in codeigniter4/shield
CodeIgniter Shield is an authentication and authorization provider for CodeIgniter 4. The secretKey value is an important key for HMAC SHA256 authentication and in affected versions was stored in the database in cleartext form. If a malicious person somehow had access to the data in the database, they could use the key and secretKey for HMAC SHA256 authentication to send requests impersonating that corresponding user. This issue has been addressed in version 1.0.0-beta.8. Users are advised to upgrade. There are no known workarounds for this vulnerability.
- Record
CVE-2023-48707- CVSS 3.1
- 5.0 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:L/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-312
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
EUVDEUVD-2023-3035
CodeIgniter Shield is an authentication and authorization provider for CodeIgniter 4. The secretKey value is an important key for HMAC SHA256 authentication and in affected versions was stored in the database in cleartext form. If a malicious person somehow had access to the data in the database, they could use the key and secretKey for HMAC SHA256 authentication to send requests impersonating that corresponding user. This issue has been addressed in version 1.0.0-beta.8. Users are advised to upgrade. There are no known workarounds for this vulnerability.
- Record
EUVD-2023-3035- CVSS 3.1
- 5.0 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:L/A:N - Updated
- 2026-11-03
GitHub AdvisoriesGHSA-v427-c49j-8w6x
Cleartext Storage of Sensitive Information in HMAC SHA256 Authentication
Impact
secretKey, an important key for HMAC SHA256 authentication, was stored in the database in raw form.
If a malicious person somehow had access to the data in the database, they could use the key and secretKey for HMAC SHA256 authentication to send requests impersonating that person.
Patches
Upgrade to Shield v1.0.0-beta.8 or later.
After upgrading, all existing secret keys must be encrypted. See https://github.com/codeigniter4/shield/blob/develop/UPGRADING.md for details.
Workarounds
None.
References
For more information
If you have any questions or comments about this advisory:
- Open an issue or discussion in codeigniter4/shield
- Email us at [email protected]
- Record
GHSA-v427-c49j-8w6x- CVSS 3.1
- 5.0 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:L/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-312
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
NVD
CodeIgniter Shield is an authentication and authorization provider for CodeIgniter 4. The secretKey value is an important key for HMAC SHA256 authentication and in affected versions was stored in the database in cleartext form. If a malicious person somehow had access to the data in the database, they could use the key and secretKey for HMAC SHA256 authentication to send requests impersonating that corresponding user. This issue has been addressed in version 1.0.0-beta.8. Users are advised to upgrade. There are no known workarounds for this vulnerability.
- Record
CVE-2023-48707- CVSS 3.1
- 5.0 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:L/A:N - CVSS 3.1
- 6.5 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-312
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSV
Cleartext Storage of Sensitive Information in codeigniter4/shield
CodeIgniter Shield is an authentication and authorization provider for CodeIgniter 4. The secretKey value is an important key for HMAC SHA256 authentication and in affected versions was stored in the database in cleartext form. If a malicious person somehow had access to the data in the database, they could use the key and secretKey for HMAC SHA256 authentication to send requests impersonating that corresponding user. This issue has been addressed in version 1.0.0-beta.8. Users are advised to upgrade. There are no known workarounds for this vulnerability.
- Record
CVE-2023-48707- CVSS 3.1
- 5.0 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:L/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-312
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSVGHSA-v427-c49j-8w6x
Cleartext Storage of Sensitive Information in HMAC SHA256 Authentication
Impact
secretKey, an important key for HMAC SHA256 authentication, was stored in the database in raw form.
If a malicious person somehow had access to the data in the database, they could use the key and secretKey for HMAC SHA256 authentication to send requests impersonating that person.
Patches
Upgrade to Shield v1.0.0-beta.8 or later.
After upgrading, all existing secret keys must be encrypted. See https://github.com/codeigniter4/shield/blob/develop/UPGRADING.md for details.
Workarounds
None.
References
For more information
If you have any questions or comments about this advisory:
- Open an issue or discussion in codeigniter4/shield
- Email us at [email protected]
- Record
GHSA-v427-c49j-8w6x- CVSS 3.1
- 5.0 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:L/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-312
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
Affected products
Affected packages
| Package | Affected | Fixed |
|---|---|---|
codeigniter4/shieldPackagist |
before 1.0.0-beta.8 | 1.0.0-beta.8 |
codeigniter4/shieldPackagist |
before 1.0.0-beta.8, plus listed versions v1.0.0-betav1.0.0-beta.2v1.0.0-beta.3v1.0.0-beta.4v1.0.0-beta.5v1.0.0-beta.6v1.0.0-beta.7 |
1.0.0-beta.8 |
History
| Recorded | Changed | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| aliases | EUVD | |
| first indexed | CVE List, GitHub Advisories, NVD, OSV |
Dates are when Every CVE recorded each change. Upstream dates may differ.
In short
CVE-2023-48707 is a medium vulnerability (CVSS 5.0) in Codeigniter Shield, published November 23, 2023. No source lists public exploit code. EPSS puts the chance of exploitation in the next 30 days at 0.28%, the 20th percentile. Fixed in codeigniter4/shield 1.0.0-beta.8.
References
github.com/codeigniter4/shield/security/advisories/GHSA-v427-c49j-8w6x
nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-48707