jsonwebtoken's insecure implementation of key retrieval function could lead to Forgeable Public/Private Tokens from RSA to HMAC
Overview
Versions <=8.5.1 of jsonwebtoken library can be misconfigured so that passing a poorly implemented key retrieval function (referring to the secretOrPublicKey argument from the readme link) will result in incorrect verification of tokens. There is a possibility of using a different algorithm and key combination in verification than the one that was used to sign the tokens. Specifically, tokens signed with an asymmetric public key could be verified with a symmetric HS256 algorithm. This can lead to successful validation of forged tokens.
Am I affected?
You will be affected if your application is supporting usage of both symmetric key and asymmetric key in jwt.verify() implementation with the same key retrieval function.
How do I fix it?
Update to version 9.0.0.
Will the fix impact my users?
There is no impact for end users
Affected software
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| Platform | Package | Vulnerable versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| npm package | jsonwebtoken | < 9.0.0 | 9.0.0 |
References
- https://github.com/auth0/node-jsonwebtoken/security/advisories/GHSA-hjrf-2m68-5959
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2022-23541
- https://github.com/auth0/node-jsonwebtoken/commit/e1fa9dcc12054a8681db4e6373da1b30cf7016e3
- https://github.com/auth0/node-jsonwebtoken
- https://github.com/auth0/node-jsonwebtoken/releases/tag/v9.0.0
- https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20240621-0007
- CVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L- Weakness (CWE)
CWE-1259, CWE-287- Platform
- npm
- Package
jsonwebtoken- Disclosed
- 22.12.2022
- Updated
- 11.10.2026 10:22
Sources and licenses
OSV / GitHub Advisory Database - GHSA-hjrf-2m68-5959 - CC BY 4.0
Vulnerability history: jsonwebtoken
All published vulnerabilities of this package (npm package), newest first. Shows whether this is a one-off slip or a package that needs watching.
- Total entries
- 4
- First → latest
- 10.2018 12.2022
- Without a fix
- 0
- Exploited in attacks
- 0
Severity breakdown
- Critical 1
- High 1
- Medium 2
Disclosures per year
- 2018: 1
- 2019: 0
- 2020: 0
- 2021: 0
- 2022: 3
- 2023: 0
- 2024: 0
- 2025: 0
- 2026: 0
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jsonwebtoken's insecure implementation of key retrieval function could lead to Forgeable Public/Private Tokens from RSA to HMAC this entry
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