{"id":"CVE-2026-74873","aliases":["EUVD-2026-60092","GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p","GHSA-jxvv-jp94-p77v","PYSEC-2026-3753"],"status":"published","title":"openssl_encrypt before 1.4.0 Password Exposure via CLI Argument","description":"openssl_encrypt versions before 1.4.0 expose passwords passed via the --password CLI argument in process listings accessible to all system users. Attackers can read process arguments through ps aux or /proc/[pid]/cmdline to retrieve plaintext passwords and keystore passwords.","severity":{"version":"4.0","score":8.7,"vector":"CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N","level":"high","assessor":"cna","from":"cve"},"epss":{"day":"2026-11-11","score":0.00315,"percentile":0.2476,"model":"v2026.06.15"},"facts":{"in_kev":false,"known_exploited":false,"public_exploit":false,"fix_available":true},"cwes":["CWE-214","CWE-256"],"published":"2026-03-31T23:42:17Z","modified":"2026-10-28T02:30:59Z","fixes":[{"ecosystem":"PyPI","package":"openssl-encrypt","fixed_in":["1.4.0"],"sources":["ghsa","osv"]}],"affected":[{"source":"ghsa","ecosystem":"PyPI","package":"openssl-encrypt","ranges":[{"type":"ECOSYSTEM","events":[{"introduced":"0"},{"fixed":"1.4.0"}]}]},{"source":"osv","ecosystem":"PyPI","package":"openssl-encrypt","ranges":[{"type":"ECOSYSTEM","events":[{"introduced":"0"},{"fixed":"1.4.0"}]}],"versions":["0.2.2","0.2.3","0.2.4","0.2.5","0.2.6","0.3.0","0.3.1","0.3.2","0.3.3","0.4.0","0.4.1","0.4.2","0.4.3","0.4.4","0.5.0","0.5.1","0.5.3","0.6.0rc1","0.7.0rc2","0.7.1","0.7.2","0.8.0","0.8.1","0.8.2","0.9.2","1.0.0","1.0.1","1.0.2","1.0.3","1.1.0","1.2.0","1.2.1","1.3.0","1.3.1","1.3.2","1.3.3","1.3.4","1.3.5","1.4.0b3","1.4.0b4","1.4.0b5","1.4.0b6","1.4.0b7","1.4.0b8"]},{"source":"osv","ecosystem":"PyPI","package":"openssl-encrypt","ranges":[{"type":"ECOSYSTEM","events":[{"introduced":"0"},{"fixed":"1.4.0"}]}],"versions":["0.2.2","0.2.3","0.2.4","0.2.5","0.2.6","0.3.0","0.3.1","0.3.2","0.3.3","0.4.0","0.4.1","0.4.2","0.4.3","0.4.4","0.5.0","0.5.1","0.5.3","0.6.0rc1","0.7.0rc2","0.7.1","0.7.2","0.8.0","0.8.1","0.8.2","0.9.2","1.0.0","1.0.1","1.0.2","1.0.3","1.1.0","1.2.0","1.2.1","1.3.0","1.3.1","1.3.2","1.3.3","1.3.4","1.3.5","1.4.0b3","1.4.0b4","1.4.0b5","1.4.0b6","1.4.0b7","1.4.0b8"]}],"products":[{"vendor":"jahlives","product":"openssl_encrypt"}],"references":[{"url":"https://github.com/jahlives/openssl_encrypt/security/advisories/GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p","tags":["vendor-advisory","Mitigation","Vendor Advisory","advisory","web"]},{"url":"https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/openssl-encrypt-before-password-exposure-via-cli-argument","tags":["third-party-advisory","Third Party Advisory","advisory"]},{"url":"https://github.com/jahlives/openssl_encrypt/commit/e78a3666e4592f3538adaaa6be8f5f04356174db","tags":["web"]},{"url":"https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p"},{"url":"https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-74873","tags":["advisory"]},{"url":"https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-jxvv-jp94-p77v"},{"url":"https://github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/tree/main/cves/2026/74xxx/CVE-2026-74873.json","tags":["advisory"]},{"url":"https://github.com/jahlives/openssl_encrypt","tags":["package"]}],"sources":{"cve":[{"id":"CVE-2026-74873","title":"openssl_encrypt before 1.4.0 Password Exposure via CLI Argument","description":"openssl_encrypt versions before 1.4.0 expose passwords passed via the --password CLI argument in process listings accessible to all system users. Attackers can read process arguments through ps aux or /proc/[pid]/cmdline to retrieve plaintext passwords and keystore passwords.","status":"published","published":"2026-08-17T11:04:42.213Z","modified":"2026-10-08T15:24:48.193Z","cvss":[{"version":"4.0","score":8.7,"vector":"CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N","level":"high","assessor":"cna"},{"version":"3.1","score":5.5,"vector":"CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N","level":"medium","assessor":"cna"}],"cwes":["CWE-214"],"updated_at":"2026-11-02T14:20:03.4818Z"}],"euvd":[{"id":"EUVD-2026-60092","description":"openssl_encrypt versions before 1.4.0 expose passwords passed via the --password CLI argument in process listings accessible to all system users. Attackers can read process arguments through ps aux or /proc/[pid]/cmdline to retrieve plaintext passwords and keystore passwords.","status":"published","published":"2026-08-17T11:04:42Z","modified":"2026-10-08T15:24:48Z","cvss":[{"version":"4.0","score":8.7,"vector":"CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N","level":"high"}],"updated_at":"2026-11-02T17:27:31.218078Z"}],"ghsa":[{"id":"GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p","title":"openssl-encrypt has visible password in process list via --password CLI argument","description":"### Summary\n\nPasswords passed via the `--password` / `-p` CLI argument in `openssl_encrypt/modules/crypt_cli_subparser.py` at **lines 150-154** are visible to any user on the system via `ps aux` or `/proc/[pid]/cmdline`.\n\n### Affected Code\n\n```python\nsubparser.add_argument(\n    \"--password\", \"-p\",\n    help=\"Password (will prompt if not provided, or use CRYPT_PASSWORD environment variable)\",\n)\n```\n\nSimilarly, `--keystore-password` exposes the keystore password.\n\n### Impact\n\nOn multi-user systems, any user can observe the encryption password by listing processes. The `CRYPT_PASSWORD` environment variable alternative is also visible via `/proc/[pid]/environ` (though with slightly restricted access).\n\n### Recommended Fix\n\n- Document the security implications prominently\n- Recommend interactive prompting (already supported) as the secure default\n- Consider supporting password file descriptors (`--password-fd`) or reading from stdin\n- Consider marking the argument as deprecated in favor of interactive prompting\n\n### Fix\n\nFixed in commit `e78a366` on branch `releases/1.4.x` — added --password-file and --password-fd arguments; added OPENSSL_ENCRYPT_PASSWORD env var support; --password now emits deprecation warning.","status":"published","published":"2026-03-31T23:42:17Z","modified":"2026-03-31T23:42:18Z","cvss":[{"version":"4.0","score":6.6,"vector":"CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:U","level":"medium"}],"cwes":["CWE-256"],"updated_at":"2026-11-02T14:39:47.075804Z"},{"id":"GHSA-jxvv-jp94-p77v","title":"openssl_encrypt versions before 1.4.0 expose passwords passed via the --password CLI argument in...","description":"openssl_encrypt versions before 1.4.0 expose passwords passed via the --password CLI argument in process listings accessible to all system users. Attackers can read process arguments through ps aux or /proc/[pid]/cmdline to retrieve plaintext passwords and keystore passwords.","status":"published","published":"2026-08-17T12:32:21Z","modified":"2026-08-17T12:32:26Z","cvss":[{"version":"4.0","score":8.7,"vector":"CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X","level":"high"},{"version":"3.1","score":5.5,"vector":"CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N","level":"medium"}],"cwes":["CWE-214"],"updated_at":"2026-11-02T15:10:34.0369Z"}],"nvd":[{"id":"CVE-2026-74873","description":"openssl_encrypt versions before 1.4.0 expose passwords passed via the --password CLI argument in process listings accessible to all system users. Attackers can read process arguments through ps aux or /proc/[pid]/cmdline to retrieve plaintext passwords and keystore passwords.","status":"published","published":"2026-08-17T11:16:41.69Z","modified":"2026-10-08T16:17:38.96Z","cvss":[{"version":"4.0","score":8.7,"vector":"CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X","level":"high","assessor":"secondary"},{"version":"3.1","score":5.5,"vector":"CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N","level":"medium","assessor":"secondary"}],"cwes":["CWE-214"],"updated_at":"2026-11-02T14:12:38.647684Z"}],"osv":[{"id":"CVE-2026-74873","title":"openssl_encrypt before 1.4.0 Password Exposure via CLI Argument","description":"openssl_encrypt versions before 1.4.0 expose passwords passed via the --password CLI argument in process listings accessible to all system users. Attackers can read process arguments through ps aux or /proc/[pid]/cmdline to retrieve plaintext passwords and keystore passwords.","status":"published","published":"2026-08-17T11:04:42.213Z","modified":"2026-10-28T02:30:59.80179081Z","cvss":[{"version":"4.0","score":8.7,"vector":"CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N","level":"high"}],"cwes":["CWE-214"],"updated_at":"2026-11-02T15:45:16.748692Z"},{"id":"GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p","title":"openssl-encrypt has visible password in process list via --password CLI argument","description":"### Summary\n\nPasswords passed via the `--password` / `-p` CLI argument in `openssl_encrypt/modules/crypt_cli_subparser.py` at **lines 150-154** are visible to any user on the system via `ps aux` or `/proc/[pid]/cmdline`.\n\n### Affected Code\n\n```python\nsubparser.add_argument(\n    \"--password\", \"-p\",\n    help=\"Password (will prompt if not provided, or use CRYPT_PASSWORD environment variable)\",\n)\n```\n\nSimilarly, `--keystore-password` exposes the keystore password.\n\n### Impact\n\nOn multi-user systems, any user can observe the encryption password by listing processes. The `CRYPT_PASSWORD` environment variable alternative is also visible via `/proc/[pid]/environ` (though with slightly restricted access).\n\n### Recommended Fix\n\n- Document the security implications prominently\n- Recommend interactive prompting (already supported) as the secure default\n- Consider supporting password file descriptors (`--password-fd`) or reading from stdin\n- Consider marking the argument as deprecated in favor of interactive prompting\n\n### Fix\n\nFixed in commit `e78a366` on branch `releases/1.4.x` — added --password-file and --password-fd arguments; added OPENSSL_ENCRYPT_PASSWORD env var support; --password now emits deprecation warning.","status":"published","published":"2026-03-31T23:42:17Z","modified":"2026-09-02T09:10:38.357692437Z","cvss":[{"version":"4.0","score":6.6,"vector":"CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:U","level":"medium"}],"cwes":["CWE-256"],"updated_at":"2026-11-02T15:46:48.546324Z"},{"id":"PYSEC-2026-3753","description":"openssl_encrypt versions before 1.4.0 expose passwords passed via the --password CLI argument in process listings accessible to all system users. Attackers can read process arguments through ps aux or /proc/[pid]/cmdline to retrieve plaintext passwords and keystore passwords.","status":"published","published":"2026-08-17T11:16:41.69Z","modified":"2026-09-02T09:00:03.088282326Z","cvss":[{"version":"4.0","score":8.7,"vector":"CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X","level":"high"}],"updated_at":"2026-11-02T15:52:57.255153Z"}]}}