MariaDB Connector/J: Cleartext password disclosure to a MITM on the initial-handshake
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- High
- Impact type
- Information disclosure
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- High · None · None
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 1 fixed, 14 without a fix
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · CNA. Fix status from CNA, GitHub and Red Hat. Impact type from CWE-522.
Summary
MariaDB Connector/J is used to connect applications developed in Java to MariaDB and MySQL databases. Prior to 2.7.14, 3.3.5, 3.4.3, and 3.5.9, when a Java application connects with sslMode=verify-full or sslMode=verify-ca, supplies a password, and does not configure serverSslCert or trustStore, Connector/J can accept an untrusted self-signed certificate through the fallbackToSystemTrustStore=true ephemeral trust manager and record its certFingerprint for later identity binding. The OK-packet and authentication-switch paths enforce the certificate fingerprint, but the initial-handshake path does not. HandshakeResponse.encode() can therefore build and send a mysql_clear_password response before checking certFingerprint != null && !isMitMProof(), sslMode, or whether the authentication plugin is resistant to a man-in-the-middle, and the initial path also bypasses restrictedAuth. An active man-in-the-middle or hostile server can present a self-signed certificate, claim to be MariaDB, select mysql_clear_password as the initial authentication plugin, and receive the full database password before the connection is rejected. This issue is fixed in versions 2.7.14, 3.3.5, 3.4.3, and 3.5.9.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- No
- Technical impact
- Partial
The decision (Track, Attend, Act) also depends on your mission and well-being impact; see CISA's SSVC guide.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MariaDB | mariadb-connector-j | before 2.7.14; 3.0.0 to before 3.3.5; 3.4.0 to before 3.4.3; 3.5.0 to before 3.5.9 | 2.7.14, 3.3.5, 3.4.3, 3.5.9 | Patch available | CNA |
| — | org.mariadb.jdbc:mariadb-java-client (Maven) | before 2.7.14 | 2.7.14 | Patch available | GHSA-g9jj-cgmh-9f38 |
| — | org.mariadb.jdbc:mariadb-java-client (Maven) | 3.0.0 to before 3.3.5 | 3.3.5 | Patch available | GHSA-g9jj-cgmh-9f38 |
| — | org.mariadb.jdbc:mariadb-java-client (Maven) | 3.4.0 to before 3.4.3 | 3.4.3 | Patch available | GHSA-g9jj-cgmh-9f38 |
| — | org.mariadb.jdbc:mariadb-java-client (Maven) | 3.5.0 to before 3.5.9 | 3.5.9 | Patch available | GHSA-g9jj-cgmh-9f38 |
- mariadb-connector-j VendorMariaDB Affected before 2.7.14; 3.0.0 to before 3.3.5; 3.4.0 to before 3.4.3; 3.5.0 to before 3.5.9 Fixed in 2.7.14, 3.3.5, 3.4.3, 3.5.9 Patch available CNA
- org.mariadb.jdbc:mariadb-java-client (Maven) Vendor— Affected before 2.7.14 Fixed in 2.7.14 Patch available GHSA-g9jj-cgmh-9f38
- org.mariadb.jdbc:mariadb-java-client (Maven) Vendor— Affected 3.0.0 to before 3.3.5 Fixed in 3.3.5 Patch available GHSA-g9jj-cgmh-9f38
- org.mariadb.jdbc:mariadb-java-client (Maven) Vendor— Affected 3.4.0 to before 3.4.3 Fixed in 3.4.3 Patch available GHSA-g9jj-cgmh-9f38
- org.mariadb.jdbc:mariadb-java-client (Maven) Vendor— Affected 3.5.0 to before 3.5.9 Fixed in 3.5.9 Patch available GHSA-g9jj-cgmh-9f38
Remediation
- Fix · CNA mariadb-connector-j (mariadb-corporation) Fixed in 2.7.14, 3.3.5, 3.4.3, 3.5.9
- Fix · GHSA-g9jj-cgmh-9f38 org.mariadb.jdbc:mariadb-java-client (Maven) Fixed in 2.7.14 Advisory →
- Fix · GHSA-g9jj-cgmh-9f38 org.mariadb.jdbc:mariadb-java-client (Maven) Fixed in 3.3.5 Advisory →
- Fix · GHSA-g9jj-cgmh-9f38 org.mariadb.jdbc:mariadb-java-client (Maven) Fixed in 3.4.3 Advisory →
- Fix · GHSA-g9jj-cgmh-9f38 org.mariadb.jdbc:mariadb-java-client (Maven) Fixed in 3.5.9 Advisory →
Red Hat 1 advisory
- RHSA-2026:83082 Released 2026-10-15 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat build of Quarkus 3.27.6 release and security update
- Red Hat build of Quarkus 3.27.6.redhat at.yawk.lz4.lz4-java-1.11.1.rhel8-redhat-00001.jar, com.fasterxml.jackson.core.jackson-core-2.21.7.redhat-00001.jar, com.fasterxml.jackson.core.jackson-databind-2.21.7.redhat-00001.jar +11
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| OpenShift Pipelines | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat Build of Keycloak | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat Fuse 7 | Affected | No fix planned: Out of support scope |
| Red Hat OpenShift AI (RHOAI) | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat OpenShift GitOps | Affected | No fix planned: Will not fix |
| Red Hat Satellite 6 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat Single Sign-On 7 | Affected | No fix planned: Out of support scope |
| Red Hat Trusted Profile Analyzer | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat build of Debezium 3 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat build of Quarkus | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Secrets Management Console for Red Hat OpenShift | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat build of Quarkus 3.27.6.redhat | Fixed | RHSA-2026:83082 |
Not affected: 8 products
- OpenShift Service Mesh 3
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9
- Red Hat Hardened Images
- Red Hat Trusted Artifact Signer
- Red Hat Trusted Profile Analyzer
- Red Hat build of Quarkus 3.27.6.redhat
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-55856
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-g9jj-cgmh-9f38
- 2026-10-06 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
- 2026-10-08 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
- 2026-10-16 Fix available: RHSA-2026:83082 · Red Hat
- 2026-10-16 Fix available: Red Hat build of Quarkus 3.27.6.redhat · Red Hat
- 2026-10-18 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
References
Other 8
- https://github.com/mariadb-corporation/mariadb-connector-j/security/advisories/GHSA-g9jj-cgmh-9f38
- https://github.com/mariadb-corporation/mariadb-connector-j/commit/149ec6a626376214966c01f42d48be1b80d06056
- https://github.com/mariadb-corporation/mariadb-connector-j/commit/d90b9872322c76b05a48219be66bff1d33102f8a
- https://hackerone.com/reports/3777370
- https://github.com/mariadb-corporation/mariadb-connector-j/releases/tag/3.4.3
- https://github.com/mariadb-corporation/mariadb-connector-j/releases/tag/3.5.9
- https://jira.mariadb.org/browse/CONJ-1325
- https://github.com/mariadb-corporation/mariadb-connector-j
More MariaDB vulnerabilities
- TI-2023-11776 MariaDB v10.5 was discovered to contain a remote code execution (RCE) vulnerability via… CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2016-05707 Oracle MySQL through 5.5.52, 5.6.x through 5.6.33, and 5.7.x through 5.7.15; MariaDB… CVSS 3.0CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2022-00687 Infinite loop in BN_mod_sqrt() reachable when parsing certificates CVSS 3.1HIGH 7.5
- TI-2014-00217 OpenSSL before 0.9.8za, 1.0.0 before 1.0.0m, and 1.0.1 before 1.0.1h does not properly… CVSS 3.1HIGH 7.4
- TI-2014-00188 The dtls1_reassemble_fragment function in d1_both.c in OpenSSL before 0.9.8za, 1.0.0… CVSS 2.0MEDIUM 6.8
- TI-2018-15259 zlib before 1.2.12 allows memory corruption when deflating (i.e., when compressing) if… CVSS 3.1HIGH 7.5
Sources
- CVE-2026-55856 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-55856 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-g9jj-cgmh-9f38 · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2026-55856 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
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