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GHSA-3p3g-vpw6-4w66

MediumCVSS 5.8 / 10
Published May 27, 2021·Last modified Mar 13, 2026
Affected Components(0)

No affected components available

Description

Impact

When using client authentication method "private_key_jwt" [1], OpenId specification says the following about assertion jti:

A unique identifier for the token, which can be used to prevent reuse of the token. These tokens MUST only be used once, unless conditions for reuse were negotiated between the parties

Hydra does not seem to check the uniqueness of this jti value. Here is me sending the same token request twice, hence with the same jti assertion, and getting two access tokens:

$ curl --insecure --location --request POST 'https://localhost/_/oauth2/token' \
   --header 'Content-Type: application/x-www-form-urlencoded' \
   --data-urlencode 'grant_type=client_credentials' \
   --data-urlencode 'client_id=c001d00d-5ecc-beef-ca4e-b00b1e54a111' \
   --data-urlencode 'scope=application openid' \
   --data-urlencode 'client_assertion_type=urn:ietf:params:oauth:client-assertion-type:jwt-bearer' \
   --data-urlencode 'client_assertion=eyJhb [...] jTw'
{"access_token":"zeG0NoqOtlACl8q5J6A-TIsNegQRRUzqLZaYrQtoBZQ.VR6iUcJQYp3u_j7pwvL7YtPqGhtyQe5OhnBE2KCp5pM","expires_in":3599,"scope":"application openid","token_type":"bearer"}⏎            ~$ curl --insecure --location --request POST 'https://localhost/_/oauth2/token' \
   --header 'Content-Type: application/x-www-form-urlencoded' \
   --data-urlencode 'grant_type=client_credentials' \
   --data-urlencode 'client_id=c001d00d-5ecc-beef-ca4e-b00b1e54a111' \
   --data-urlencode 'scope=application openid' \
   --data-urlencode 'client_assertion_type=urn:ietf:params:oauth:client-assertion-type:jwt-bearer' \
   --data-urlencode 'client_assertion=eyJhb [...] jTw'
{"access_token":"wOYtgCLxLXlELORrwZlmeiqqMQ4kRzV-STU2_Sollas.mwlQGCZWXN7G2IoegUe1P0Vw5iGoKrkOzOaplhMSjm4","expires_in":3599,"scope":"application openid","token_type":"bearer"}

Severity

We rate the severity as medium because the following reasons make it hard to replay tokens without the patch:

  • TLS protects against MITM which makes it difficult to intercept valid tokens for replay attacks
  • The expiry time of the JWT gives only a short window of opportunity where it could be replayed

Patches

This will be patched with v1.4.0+oryOS.17

Workarounds

Two workarounds have been identified:

  • Do not allow clients to use private_key_jwt
  • Use short expiry times for the JWTs

References

https://openid.net/specs/openid-connect-core-1_0.html#ClientAuthentication

Upstream

This issue will be resolved in the upstream repository https://github.com/ory/fosite

Risk Scores
Base Score
5.8

The vulnerability can be exploited over the network without needing physical access. It is difficult for an attacker to exploit this vulnerability and may require special conditions. An attacker needs basic access or low-level privileges. The attacker needs the user to perform some action, like clicking a link. The vulnerability can affect other systems as well, not just the initial system. There is a high impact on the confidentiality of the information.

Threat Intelligence
5.3

Exploitation attempts have been detected. Elevated vigilance and prompt remediation are advised.

EPSS
1.03%

The exploit probability is very low. The vulnerability is unlikely to be exploited in the next 30 days.

Exploit
Not available

We did not find any exploit available. Neither in GitHub repositories nor in the Exploit-Database.

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