GHSA-hh28-h22f-8357
LOWOpenBao has a Timing Side-Channel in the Userpass Auth Method
EPSS Exploitation Probability
EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) is a daily probability model maintained by FIRST.org. It estimates the likelihood a CVE will be exploited in production environments within the next 30 days, derived from real-world threat intelligence signals.
Blast Radius
github.com/openbao/openbao🐹github.com/openbao/openbaoReal-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
Impact
When using OpenBao's userpass auth method, user enumeration was possible due to timing difference between non-existent users and users with stored credentials. This is independent of whether the supplied credentials were valid for the given user.
Patches
OpenBao v2.3.2 will patch this issue.
Workarounds
Users may use another auth method or apply rate limiting quotas to limit the number of requests in a period of time: https://openbao.org/api-docs/system/rate-limit-quotas/
References
This issue was disclosed to HashiCorp and is the OpenBao equivalent of the following tickets:
- https://discuss.hashicorp.com/t/hcsec-2025-15-timing-side-channel-in-vault-s-userpass-auth-method/76034
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-6011
Barring further information, this is also assumed to cover and remediate the following additional vulnerability:
- https://discuss.hashicorp.com/t/hcsec-2025-21-vault-user-enumeration-in-userpass-auth-method/76095
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-6010
If this is not the case as further details emerge, a new CVE will be assigned for remediating that. Otherwise, no further CVE will be sought.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐹Go | github.com/openbao/openbao | ≥ 0.1.0&&< 2.3.2 | 2.3.2 |
| 🐹Go | github.com/openbao/openbao | all versions | 0.0.0-20250806193356-4d9b5d3d6486 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for github.com/openbao/openbao. 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 github.com/openbao/openbao to 2.3.2 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-hh28-h22f-8357 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-hh28-h22f-8357 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-hh28-h22f-8357. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is GHSA-hh28-h22f-8357 in your dependencies?
O3 detects GHSA-hh28-h22f-8357 across Go dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.