How severe is GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p?

No CVSS score has been assigned to GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p yet. Review the advisory details and affected package list to assess your exposure.

Which packages are affected by GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p?

GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p affects the following packages: openssl-encrypt (PyPI). Ecosystems affected: PyPI.

How do I fix GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p?

Update openssl-encrypt to 1.4.0 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p is resolved across your whole dependency graph.

How do I detect GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p in my PyPI dependencies?

Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for openssl-encrypt. O3's reachability analysis confirms whether the vulnerable code path is actually invoked in your application, so you act on real exposure instead of every transitive match.

How do I mitigate GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p if there is no patch (or I can't update yet)?

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.

How does O3 Security protect against GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p?

O3 pinpoints whether GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p is reachable in your code and exactly where to fix it, then blocks exploitation in production at runtime until the patched version is deployed.

Is GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p actively exploited in the wild?

No public exploit code has been indexed for GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p yet. This does not mean the vulnerability cannot be exploited — absence of public exploits does not imply safety. Apply the recommended fix and use O3 Security to monitor your exposure.

When was GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p published, and has it been updated?

GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p was published on March 31, 2026 and was last updated on March 31, 2026. Advisory data evolves as severity scores, affected ranges, and exploit intelligence are revised — always check the latest version of the advisory before acting.

🐍 PyPI

GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p

openssl-encrypt has visible password in process list via --password CLI argument

Published

Mar 31, 2026

Updated

Mar 31, 2026

Affected

1 pkg

Patched

1 / 1

Exploits

None indexed

Blast Radius

1 pkg affected

🐍openssl-encrypt

Real-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects PyPI packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.

Description

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.

Affected Packages

1 total 1 fixed

Ecosystem	Package	Vulnerable range	Fix
🐍PyPI	`openssl-encrypt`	all versions	1.4.0

Detection & mitigation playbook

Open-source dependency

Detect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for openssl-encrypt. O3's reachability analysis confirms whether the vulnerable code path is actually invoked in your application, so you act on real exposure instead of every transitive match.
Fix
Update openssl-encrypt to 1.4.0 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p 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.
How O3 protects you
O3 pinpoints whether GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p is reachable in your code and exactly where to fix it, then blocks exploitation in production at runtime until the patched version is deployed.

Tailored to GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.

Frequently Asked Questions

### 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 ```python 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

O3 Security · Impact-Aware SCA

Is GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p in your dependencies?

O3 detects GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p across PyPI dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.

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