Timing attack on stored passwords in Catalyst Plugin Authentication for Perl
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- Information disclosure
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- High · None · None
- Fix status
- Fixed
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · CISA ADP. Fix status from CNA. Impact type from CWE-208.
Summary
Catalyst::Plugin::Authentication versions before 0.10029 for Perl compare passwords in the legacy password verifier using eq, which leaks timing information (CWE-208). A remote attacker can measure response-time differences to guess the stored clear-text password, crypt hash or base64 digest, without authentication. The flaw is in the legacy verifier used by the deprecated login method, and an earlier fix covered a different verifier.
Written with Claude Haiku 5.5 from the sources below · 2026-11-06
Description from the CNA
Catalyst::Plugin::Authentication versions before 0.10029 for Perl allow timing attacks on stored passwords via eq comparisons in the legacy password verifier. CVE-2026-5091 was fixed in the realm-based verifier. The legacy verifier, used by the deprecated login method, compares clear-text passwords, crypt hashes and base64 digests with eq, so the comparison time depends on how many leading bytes match. A remote attacker can use response-time differences to guess the stored password or hash.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- Yes
- 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | Catalyst-Plugin-Authentication | before 0.10029 | 0.10029 | Patch available | CNA |
- Catalyst-Plugin-Authentication Vendor— Affected before 0.10029 Fixed in 0.10029 Patch available CNA
Remediation
Upgrade Catalyst-Plugin-Authentication to version 0.10029 or later.
Written with Claude Haiku 5.5 from the sources below · 2026-11-06
- Fix · CNA Catalyst-Plugin-Authentication Fixed in 0.10029
Vendor assessments
Timeline
- 2026-11-03 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-74846
- 2026-11-03 Alias added: GHSA-p4f5-m8h6-x7p5
- 2026-11-03 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
- 2026-11-03 CVSS score added · Red Hat
- 2026-11-06 CVSS score added · CISA ADP
- 2026-11-06 CISA SSVC decision points changed
References
Sources
- CVE-2026-74846 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-74846 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-p4f5-m8h6-x7p5 · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2026-74846 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. Sources and licences