CVE-2026-64652 is a low-severity (CVSS 3.3) CWE-201 vulnerability in github.com/cli/cli/v2. A fix is available for github.com/cli/cli/v2 — see the affected versions and patch details below.
GitHub CLI: Partial token disclosure in `gh auth status` output
Exploitation Status
No confirmed exploitation observed yet
- CISA’s own triage has not observed active exploitation or public proof-of-concept code for this CVE as of its last assessment.
Exploitation and automatability from CISA’s SSVC triage for CVE-2026-64652.
EPSS Exploitation Probability
Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.
How urgent is this, really
CVE-2026-64652 by exploitation likelihood (EPSS) against impact (CVSS). Outside the shaded patch-first corner.
Where this sits among everything scored
Of 394,415 CVEs with a current EPSS score, this one falls in the < 10% band (highlighted). Counts from FIRST.org, log-scaled.
Real-World Exposure
github.com/cli/cli/v2Real-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects Go packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
Summary
A security vulnerability has been identified in GitHub CLI where gh auth status could potentially print a portion of the authentication token in plaintext, depending on the lexical structure of the token.
Affected users:
- Authenticated users who ran
gh auth status(without the--show-tokenflag) with a token type whose format contains an underscore after the prefix. This includes fine-grained personal access tokens (github_pat_*) and GitHub App installation/user access tokens (ghs_*,ghu_*, e.g.,ghs_<APPID>_<JWT>), including the ActionsGITHUB_TOKEN. Classic tokens such asgho_*andghp_*have an underscore-free body and are not affected.
Details
The vulnerability stems from the way GitHub CLI masks the authentication token when reporting authentication state:
- A user runs
gh auth statuswithout--show-token, expecting the token to be fully masked. - The masking logic redacts only the characters that follow the last underscore in the token, instead of redacting everything after the token prefix.
- The partially masked token is written to the command output, where it can be captured or shared.
Because gh auth status is a diagnostic command commonly run interactively and inside automated environments, the leaked token characters can end up in CI/CD job logs, terminal scrollback, screen recordings, screenshots, or pasted output shared in bug reports and support requests.
In v2.97.0, GitHub CLI fully masks the token in gh auth status output, preserving only the known token prefix and redacting the remainder unless --show-token is explicitly provided.
Impact
Running gh auth status in a context where the output is captured, logged, or shared could leak a portion of an affected token. The affected token types are fine-grained personal access tokens (github_pat_*) and GitHub App installation/user access tokens (ghs_*, ghu_*, e.g., ghs_<APPID>_<JWT>), including the Actions GITHUB_TOKEN. Installation and Actions tokens are short-lived, which narrows the window in which a recovered token could be reused. See GitHub credential types.
Remediation and Mitigation
- Upgrade
ghtov2.97.0. - Rotate any affected token whose masked
gh auth statusoutput may have been captured or shared:- Fine-grained personal access tokens (
github_pat_*): regenerate the token from your account settings. See Managing your personal access tokens. - GitHub App installation/user access tokens (
ghs_*,ghu_*, e.g.,ghs_<APPID>_<JWT>): these are short-lived and rotate automatically (See GitHub credential types). If you believe a token was captured while still valid, you can revoke it immediately using the Revoke an installation access token REST endpoint (DELETE /installation/token). To cut off a third-party app's access more broadly, suspend or uninstall the app from the web UI. See Reviewing and modifying installed GitHub Apps. - Actions
GITHUB_TOKEN: this token is automatically invalidated when the job finishes, so no manual revocation is normally required. See GitHub credential types.
- Fine-grained personal access tokens (
- Until you can upgrade, avoid running
gh auth statusin contexts where the output is captured or shared, and manually redact the token line before sharing any output.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐹Go | github.com/cli/cli/v2 | all versions | 2.97.0go get github.com/cli/cli/v2@v2.97.0 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for github.com/cli/cli/v2, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update github.com/cli/cli/v2 to 2.97.0 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2026-64652 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2026-64652 in your dependencies?
Find it across Go, including transitive dependencies.