GHSA-H3M5-P59H-X88P

Vulnerability from github – Published: 2026-03-31 23:42 – Updated: 2026-03-31 23:42
VLAI
Summary
openssl-encrypt has visible password in process list via --password CLI argument
Details

Summary

Passwords 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.

Affected Code

subparser.add_argument(
    "--password", "-p",
    help="Password (will prompt if not provided, or use CRYPT_PASSWORD environment variable)",
)

Similarly, --keystore-password exposes the keystore password.

Impact

On 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).

Recommended Fix

  • Document the security implications prominently
  • Recommend interactive prompting (already supported) as the secure default
  • Consider supporting password file descriptors (--password-fd) or reading from stdin
  • Consider marking the argument as deprecated in favor of interactive prompting

Fix

Fixed 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.

Show details on source website

{
  "affected": [
    {
      "package": {
        "ecosystem": "PyPI",
        "name": "openssl-encrypt"
      },
      "ranges": [
        {
          "events": [
            {
              "introduced": "0"
            },
            {
              "fixed": "1.4.0"
            }
          ],
          "type": "ECOSYSTEM"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "aliases": [],
  "database_specific": {
    "cwe_ids": [
      "CWE-256"
    ],
    "github_reviewed": true,
    "github_reviewed_at": "2026-03-31T23:42:17Z",
    "nvd_published_at": null,
    "severity": "MODERATE"
  },
  "details": "### 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` \u2014 added --password-file and --password-fd arguments; added OPENSSL_ENCRYPT_PASSWORD env var support; --password now emits deprecation warning.",
  "id": "GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p",
  "modified": "2026-03-31T23:42:17Z",
  "published": "2026-03-31T23:42:17Z",
  "references": [
    {
      "type": "WEB",
      "url": "https://github.com/jahlives/openssl_encrypt/security/advisories/GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p"
    },
    {
      "type": "WEB",
      "url": "https://github.com/jahlives/openssl_encrypt/commit/e78a3666e4592f3538adaaa6be8f5f04356174db"
    },
    {
      "type": "PACKAGE",
      "url": "https://github.com/jahlives/openssl_encrypt"
    }
  ],
  "schema_version": "1.4.0",
  "severity": [
    {
      "score": "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",
      "type": "CVSS_V4"
    }
  ],
  "summary": "openssl-encrypt has visible password in process list via --password CLI argument"
}


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