GitHub Advisoryadvisory · PyPI

GHSA-h3m5-p59h-x88p openssl-encrypt has visible password in process list via --password CLI argument

MEDIUM Published 2026-03-31 Modified 2026-03-31 Official page ↗
Ecosystem
PyPI
Packages
openssl-encrypt
Severity
Moderate
CVSS vector
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:U
Weaknesses
CWE-256
Reviewed
2026-03-31

Affected packages

• PyPI openssl-encrypt: < 1.4.0 → fixed in 1.4.0

Description

Summary Passwords passed via the `--password` / `-p` CLI argument in `openssl_encrypt/modules/crypt_cli_subparser.py` at lines 150-154 are visible to any user on the system via `ps aux` or `/proc/[pid]/cmdline`. Affected Code ```python subparser.add_argument( "--password", "-p", help="Password (will prompt if not provided, or use CRYPT_PASSWORD environment variable)", ) ``` Similarly, `--keystore-password` exposes the keystore password. Impact On multi-user systems, any user can observe the encryption password by listing processes. The `CRYPT_PASSWORD` environment variable alternative is also visible via `/proc/[pid]/environ` (though with slightly restricted access). Recommended Fix • Document the security implications prominently • Recommend interactive prompting (already supported) as the secure default • Consider supporting password file descriptors (`--password-fd`) or reading from stdin • Consider marking the argument as deprecated in favor of interactive prompting Fix Fixed in commit `e78a366` on branch `releases/1.4.x` — added --password-file and --password-fd arguments; added OPENSSL_ENCRYPT_PASSWORD env var support; --password now emits deprecation warning.

Related

Weakness · CWE (1)

  • CWE-256 Plaintext Storage of a Password weakness

References