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Medium

OAuthLib: Timing Attack Vulnerability in PKCE code_verifier Comparison

Type: advisorySource: Official CVE List1 source record

OAuthLib is an implementation of the OAuth request-signing logic for Python 3.6+. From 3.0.0 until 4.0.0, OAuthLib's PKCE checks in oauthlib/oauth2/rfc6749/grant_types/authorization_code.py compare attacker-supplied code_verifier values with stored challenges using ordinary string equality in code_challenge_method_plain and code_challenge_method_s256. Because the comparison can return after a length difference or the first mismatching character, repeated token endpoint measurements can reveal common-prefix timing information that could potentially allow recovery of the code_verifier, unauthorized access-token acquisition, and account takeover. Practical exploitation requires an intercepted, single-use authorization code and enough measurements to overcome real-world network noise; the local timing benchmark does not establish practical remote account takeover, so the weakness remains a defense-in-depth concern. This issue is fixed in version 4.0.0.

Announced Source revision 1
Original source ↗

CVE-2026-49265

Primary source · Revision 1

Imported from structured advisory data. Source references identify upstream records or fields; verify affected versions and your deployed configuration.

Security context

Source reference: cve:CVE-2026-49265

oauthlib

Source reference: /containers/cna/affected/0/product

Affected versions
Not stated in this record
Fixed versions
Not stated in this record
Prerequisites
Not stated in this record

Structured affected-version data

Original package identities and version rules from this source.

[
  {
    "vendor": "oauthlib",
    "product": "oauthlib",
    "versions": [
      {
        "status": "affected",
        "version": ">= 3.0.0, < 4.0.0"
      }
    ]
  }
]
Related CVEs
CVE-2026-49265

Source reference: /cveMetadata/cveId

Publisher severity

medium

Source reference: /containers/cna/metrics

Event
#20397 · Revision 1
Added to Heist Feed
Publisher date
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