CVE-2025-4656: Github.com/hashicorp/vault Denial of Service Vulnerability

LOW
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-fhc2-8qx8-6vj7
Share
CVSS 3.1
CWE-1088
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2025-4656 is a LOW (CVSS 3.1) denial of service vulnerability (CWE-1088: Synchronous Access of Remote Resource without Timeout) affecting Github.com/hashicorp/vault libraries in the Go ecosystem. The issue involves vault community edition rekey and recovery key operations can cause denial of service. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 1.20.0.

CVE-2025-4656 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2025-4656
GHSA Identifier GHSA-fhc2-8qx8-6vj7
Severity LOW
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 3.1
CWE Classification CWE-1088: Synchronous Access of Remote Resource without Timeout
Affected Product Github.com/hashicorp/vault
Package Ecosystem Go
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 3.1

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

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

How to Fix CVE-2025-4656

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

github.com/hashicorp/vault fixed: 1.20.0 
Upgrade github.com/hashicorp/vault to 1.20.0
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

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

inspect dependencies for github.com/hashicorp/vault

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your application is affected by CVE-2025-4656, inspect your project dependencies for Github.com/hashicorp/vault:

inspect dependencies for github.com/hashicorp/vault

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Github.com/hashicorp/vault in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 1.20.0), your application is affected.

Note: Verify declared build manifests and deployed runtime container environments.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-1088: Synchronous Access of Remote Resource without Timeout, where the code has a synchronous call to a remote resource, but there is no timeout for the call, or the timeout is set to infinite. In Github.com/hashicorp/vault, 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

Vault Community and Vault Enterprise rekey and recovery key operations can lead to a denial of service due to uncontrolled cancellation by a Vault operator. This vulnerability (CVE-2025-4656) has been remediated in Vault Community Edition 1.20.0 and Vault Enterprise 1.20.0, 1.19.6, 1.18.11, 1.17.17, and 1.16.22.

CVE-2025-4656 Affected Github.com/hashicorp/vault Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
1.20.0
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
github.com/hashicorp/vault
golang/github.com/hashicorp/vault
Go
≥ 1.14.8
< 1.20.0
1.20.0

References

NVD — CVE-2025-4656 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-4656
Github.com/hashicorp/vault Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/hashicorp/vault/pull/30794
discuss.hashicorp.com/t/hcsec-2025-11-vau... WEB
https://discuss.hashicorp.com/t/hcsec-2025-11-vault-vulnerable-to-recovery-key-cancellation-denial-of-service/75570
Github.com/hashicorp/vault Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/hashicorp/vault

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2025-4656?
CVE-2025-4656 is a security vulnerability in Github.com/hashicorp/vault involving Vault Community Edition rekey and recovery key operations can cause denial of service under CWE-1088: Synchronous Access of Remote Resource without Timeout.
Which Github.com/hashicorp/vault versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 1.20.0 across affected packages: github.com/hashicorp/vault.
What version fixes CVE-2025-4656?
Upgrading to 1.20.0 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is github.com/hashicorp/vault affected?
Yes, github.com/hashicorp/vault is affected in releases prior to 1.20.0. Upgrade your dependency to 1.20.0 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2025-4656?
CVE-2025-4656 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 3.1 (LOW) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2025-4656?
CVE-2025-4656 is classified under CWE-1088: Synchronous Access of Remote Resource without Timeout (The code has a synchronous call to a remote resource, but there is no timeout for the call, or the timeout is set to infinite.).
How can I check Go dependencies for CVE-2025-4656?
Run the dependency tree command: 'inspect dependencies for github.com/hashicorp/vault'. 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-fhc2-8qx8-6vj7",
  "modified" : "2025-06-27T21:43:29Z",
  "published" : "2025-06-26T21:31:12Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2025-4656" ],
  "summary" : "Vault Community Edition rekey and recovery key operations can cause denial of service",
  "details" : "Vault Community and Vault Enterprise rekey and recovery key operations can lead to a denial of service due to uncontrolled cancellation by a Vault operator. This vulnerability (CVE-2025-4656) has been remediated in Vault Community Edition 1.20.0 and Vault Enterprise 1.20.0, 1.19.6, 1.18.11, 1.17.17, and 1.16.22.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Go",
      "name" : "github.com/hashicorp/vault"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "1.14.8"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "1.20.0"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-4656"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/hashicorp/vault/pull/30794"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://discuss.hashicorp.com/t/hcsec-2025-11-vault-vulnerable-to-recovery-key-cancellation-denial-of-service/75570"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/hashicorp/vault"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-1088" ],
    "severity" : "LOW",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2025-06-27T21:43:29Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2025-06-25T17:15:38Z"
  }
}