CVE-2023-38325: Cryptography Cryptography Mishandles SSH Certificates Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-cf7p-gm2m-833m
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CVSS 7.5
CWE-295
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2023-38325 is a HIGH (CVSS 7.5) cryptography mishandles ssh certificates vulnerability (CWE-295: Improper Certificate Validation) affecting Cryptography libraries in the PyPI ecosystem. The issue involves cryptography mishandles ssh certificates. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 41.0.2.

CVE-2023-38325 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2023-38325
GHSA Identifier GHSA-cf7p-gm2m-833m
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 7.5
CWE Classification CWE-295: Improper Certificate Validation
Affected Product Cryptography
Package Ecosystem PyPI
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 7.5

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N).

Attack Vector Network (AV:N)
Attack Complexity Low (AC:L)
Privileges Required None (PR:N)
User Interaction None (UI:N)
Scope Unchanged (S:U)
Confidentiality None (C:N)
Integrity High (I:H)
Availability None (A:N)

How to Fix CVE-2023-38325

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Cryptography dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

cryptography fixed: 41.0.2 
pip install cryptography>=41.0.2
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release: 

pip show cryptography

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Python environment is affected by CVE-2023-38325, inspect your installed packages using pip:

pip show cryptography

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Cryptography in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 41.0.2), your application is affected.

Note: The pip show cryptography command checks currently installed packages in your active Python environment.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-295: Improper Certificate Validation, where the product does not validate, or incorrectly validates, a certificate. In Cryptography, software state validation or input boundaries are circumvented during processing. Review the official source advisory statement below for specific affected components, classes, and reproduction details.

Source Advisory Statement

The cryptography package before 41.0.2 for Python mishandles SSH certificates that have critical options.

CVE-2023-38325 Affected Cryptography Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
41.0.2
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
cryptography
pypi/cryptography
PyPI
≥ 40.0.0
< 41.0.2
41.0.2

References

NVD — CVE-2023-38325 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-38325
Cryptography Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/pyca/cryptography/issues/9207
Cryptography Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/pyca/cryptography/pull/7960
Cryptography Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/pyca/cryptography/pull/9208
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/pyca/cryptography/commit/1ca7adc97b76a9dfbd3d850628b613eb93b78fc3
Cryptography Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/pyca/cryptography
Cryptography Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/pyca/cryptography/compare/41.0.1...41.0.2
Cryptography Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/pypa/advisory-database/tree/main/vulns/cryptography/PYSEC-2023-112.yaml
lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/packa... WEB
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/NMCCTYY3CSNQBFFYYC5DAV6KATHWCUZK
lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/packa... WEB
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/NMCCTYY3CSNQBFFYYC5DAV6KATHWCUZK
pypi.org/project/cryptograph... WEB
https://pypi.org/project/cryptography/#history
Cryptography Security Information SECURITY
https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20230824-0010

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2023-38325?
CVE-2023-38325 is a security vulnerability in Cryptography involving cryptography mishandles SSH certificates under CWE-295: Improper Certificate Validation.
Which Cryptography versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 41.0.2 across affected packages: cryptography.
What version fixes CVE-2023-38325?
Upgrading to 41.0.2 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is cryptography affected?
Yes, cryptography is affected in releases prior to 41.0.2. Upgrade your dependency to 41.0.2 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2023-38325?
CVE-2023-38325 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.5 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2023-38325?
CVE-2023-38325 is classified under CWE-295: Improper Certificate Validation (The product does not validate, or incorrectly validates, a certificate.).
How can I check PyPI dependencies for CVE-2023-38325?
Run the dependency tree command: 'pip show cryptography'. This command lists direct and transitive dependencies in your build configuration so you can verify if a vulnerable version is resolved.
Machine-readable OSV JSON OSV v1.5 Schema
Normalized schema output
View Raw JSON 
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-cf7p-gm2m-833m",
  "modified" : "2024-09-13T20:06:10Z",
  "published" : "2023-07-14T21:31:08Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2023-38325" ],
  "summary" : "cryptography mishandles SSH certificates",
  "details" : "The cryptography package before 41.0.2 for Python mishandles SSH certificates that have critical options.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N"
  }, {
    "type" : "CVSS_V4",
    "score" : "CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:H/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "PyPI",
      "name" : "cryptography"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "40.0.0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "41.0.2"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-38325"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/pyca/cryptography/issues/9207"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/pyca/cryptography/pull/7960"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/pyca/cryptography/pull/9208"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/pyca/cryptography/commit/1ca7adc97b76a9dfbd3d850628b613eb93b78fc3"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/pyca/cryptography"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/pyca/cryptography/compare/41.0.1...41.0.2"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/pypa/advisory-database/tree/main/vulns/cryptography/PYSEC-2023-112.yaml"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/NMCCTYY3CSNQBFFYYC5DAV6KATHWCUZK"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/NMCCTYY3CSNQBFFYYC5DAV6KATHWCUZK"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://pypi.org/project/cryptography/#history"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20230824-0010"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-295" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2023-07-14T22:14:26Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2023-07-14T20:15:09Z"
  }
}