CVE-2022-23540: Jsonwebtoken Jsonwebtoken Vulnerable To Signature Validation Vulnerability

MODERATE
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-qwph-4952-7xr6
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CVSS 6.4
CWE-287 CWE-327 CWE-347
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2022-23540 is a MODERATE (CVSS 6.4) jsonwebtoken vulnerable to signature validation vulnerability (CWE-287: Improper Authentication) affecting Jsonwebtoken libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves jsonwebtoken vulnerable to signature validation bypass due to insecure default algorithm in jwt.verify(). Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 9.0.0.

CVE-2022-23540 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2022-23540
GHSA Identifier GHSA-qwph-4952-7xr6
Severity MODERATE
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 6.4
CWE Classification CWE-287: Improper Authentication
Affected Product Jsonwebtoken
Package Ecosystem npm
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 6.4

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

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

How to Fix CVE-2022-23540

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

jsonwebtoken fixed: 9.0.0 
npm install jsonwebtoken@9.0.0
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

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

npm ls jsonwebtoken

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Node.js application is affected by CVE-2022-23540, inspect your project dependencies using npm:

npm ls jsonwebtoken

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Jsonwebtoken in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 9.0.0), your application is affected.

Note: The npm ls jsonwebtoken command inspects dependencies declared in your package.json and lockfile; it does not perform automated runtime dynamic scanning.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-287: Improper Authentication, where when an actor claims to have a given identity, the product does not prove or insufficiently proves that the claim is correct. In Jsonwebtoken, 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

# Overview In versions <=8.5.1 of jsonwebtoken library, lack of algorithm definition and a falsy secret or key in the `jwt.verify()` function can lead to signature validation bypass due to defaulting to the `none` algorithm for signature verification. # Am I affected? You will be affected if all the following are true in the `jwt.verify()` function: - a token with no signature is received - no algorithms are specified - a falsy (e.g. null, false, undefined) secret or key is passed # How do I fix it? Update to version 9.0.0 which removes the default support for the none algorithm in the `jwt.verify()` method. # Will the fix impact my users? There will be no impact, if you update to version 9.0.0 and you don’t need to allow for the `none` algorithm. If you need 'none' algorithm, you have to explicitly specify that in `jwt.verify()` options.

CVE-2022-23540 Affected Jsonwebtoken Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
9.0.0
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
jsonwebtoken
npm/jsonwebtoken
npm
< 9.0.0
9.0.0

References

GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/auth0/node-jsonwebtoken/security/advisories/GHSA-qwph-4952-7xr6
NVD — CVE-2022-23540 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2022-23540
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/auth0/node-jsonwebtoken/commit/e1fa9dcc12054a8681db4e6373da1b30cf7016e3
Jsonwebtoken Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/auth0/node-jsonwebtoken
Jsonwebtoken Security Information SECURITY
https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20240621-0007

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2022-23540?
CVE-2022-23540 is a security vulnerability in Jsonwebtoken involving jsonwebtoken vulnerable to signature validation bypass due to insecure default algorithm in jwt.verify() under CWE-287: Improper Authentication.
Which Jsonwebtoken versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 9.0.0 across affected packages: jsonwebtoken.
What version fixes CVE-2022-23540?
Upgrading to 9.0.0 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is jsonwebtoken affected?
Yes, jsonwebtoken is affected in releases prior to 9.0.0. Upgrade your dependency to 9.0.0 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2022-23540?
CVE-2022-23540 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 6.4 (MODERATE) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:H/A:L.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2022-23540?
CVE-2022-23540 is classified under CWE-287: Improper Authentication (When an actor claims to have a given identity, the product does not prove or insufficiently proves that the claim is correct.).
How can I check npm dependencies for CVE-2022-23540?
Run the dependency tree command: 'npm ls jsonwebtoken'. 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-qwph-4952-7xr6",
  "modified" : "2025-02-13T18:33:13Z",
  "published" : "2022-12-22T03:32:59Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2022-23540" ],
  "summary" : "jsonwebtoken vulnerable to signature validation bypass due to insecure default algorithm in jwt.verify()",
  "details" : "# Overview\n\nIn versions <=8.5.1 of jsonwebtoken library, lack of algorithm definition and a falsy secret or key in the `jwt.verify()` function can lead to signature validation bypass due to defaulting to the `none` algorithm for signature verification.\n\n# Am I affected?\nYou will be affected if all the following are true in the `jwt.verify()` function:\n- a token with no signature is received\n- no algorithms are specified \n- a falsy (e.g. null, false, undefined) secret or key is passed \n\n# How do I fix it?\n \nUpdate to version 9.0.0 which removes the default support for the none algorithm in the `jwt.verify()` method. \n\n# Will the fix impact my users?\n\nThere will be no impact, if you update to version 9.0.0 and you don’t need to allow for the `none` algorithm. If you need 'none' algorithm, you have to explicitly specify that in `jwt.verify()` options.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:H/A:L"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "npm",
      "name" : "jsonwebtoken"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "9.0.0"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/auth0/node-jsonwebtoken/security/advisories/GHSA-qwph-4952-7xr6"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2022-23540"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/auth0/node-jsonwebtoken/commit/e1fa9dcc12054a8681db4e6373da1b30cf7016e3"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/auth0/node-jsonwebtoken"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20240621-0007"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-287", "CWE-327", "CWE-347" ],
    "severity" : "MODERATE",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2022-12-22T03:32:59Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2022-12-22T19:15:00Z"
  }
}