GHSA-6f65-4fv2-wwch
Vendure vulnerable to timing attack that enables user enumeration in NativeAuthenticationStrategy
Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Affected | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| npm | @vendure/core | < 3.5.3 | 3.5.3 |
Details
As written in the advisory (Markdown source, shown as plain text).
### Summary
The `NativeAuthenticationStrategy.authenticate()` method is vulnerable to a timing attack that allows attackers to enumerate valid usernames (email addresses).
### Details
In `packages/core/src/config/auth/native-authentication-strategy.ts`, the authenticate method returns immediately if a user is not found:
```typescript
const user = await this.userService.getUserByEmailAddress(ctx, data.username);
if (!user) {
return false; // Instant return (~1-5ms)
}
const passwordMatch = await this.verifyUserPassword(ctx, user.id, data.password);
// Password check takes ~200-400ms with bcrypt (12 rounds)
```
The significant timing difference (~200-400ms for bcrypt vs ~1-5ms for DB miss) allows attackers to reliably distinguish between existing and non-existing accounts.
### Impact
- Attackers can enumerate valid user accounts
- Enables targeted brute-force or phishing attacks
- Information disclosure (account existence)
### Recommended Fix
Perform a dummy bcrypt check when user is not found to ensure consistent response times.
References
External links from the advisory. They lead to third-party sites.
- https://github.com/vendurehq/vendure/security/advisories/GHSA-6f65-4fv2-wwch
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-25050
- https://github.com/vendurehq/vendure/commit/7f0c5556ecddb44a5d5208677a45fdd5923b0cc9
- https://github.com/vendurehq/vendure
- https://github.com/vendurehq/vendure/releases/tag/v3.5.3