CVE-2023-25561 | Login fail open on JAAS misconfiguration in DataHub

DataHub is an open-source metadata platform. In the event a system is using Java Authentication and Authorization Service (JAAS) authentication and that system is given a configuration which contains an error, the authentication for the system will fail open and allow an attacker to login using any username and password. The reason for this is that while an error is thrown in the `authenticateJaasUser` method it is swallowed without propagating the error. As a result of this issue unauthenticated users may gain access to the system. Users are advised to upgrade. There are no known workarounds for this issue. This vulnerability was discovered and reported by the GitHub Security lab and is tracked as GHSL-2022-081.

Published: 2023-02-11 Last update: 2025-12-03 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]

Conclusion & alert: CVE-2023-25561 is rated Moderate Risk (41.2/100): CVSS Medium severity, with medium exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.30%). Mandatory action: Review affected assets and schedule remediation.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2023-25561

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2026-04-25 0.52% 0.30% -0.22%
2 2026-03-04 0.25% 0.52% +0.27%
3 2026-02-12 0.25%

Full EPSS history (12 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2023-25561

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
5.7 3.1 MEDIUM
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:L)
They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by.
Attack complexity (AC:H)
Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work.
Privileges required (PR:H)
They need powerful rights—admin, root, or similar—before this pays off.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:N)
Service keeps running; no real outage angle.
0.5 5.2 [email protected]
9.8 3.1 CRITICAL
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
3.9 5.9 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2023-25561

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2023-25561

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
datahub datahub < 0.8.45 cpe:2.3:a:datahub:datahub:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2023-25561

cvelogic Threat Intelligence