CVE-2020-4071

Timing attack on django-basic-auth-ip-whitelist

Description

In django-basic-auth-ip-whitelist before 0.3.4, a potential timing attack exists on websites where the basic authentication is used or configured, i.e. BASIC_AUTH_LOGIN and BASIC_AUTH_PASSWORD is set. Currently the string comparison between configured credentials and the ones provided by users is performed through a character-by-character string comparison. This enables a possibility that attacker may time the time it takes the server to validate different usernames and password, and use this knowledge to work out the valid credentials. This attack is understood not to be realistic over the Internet. However, it may be achieved from within local networks where the website is hosted, e.g. from inside a data centre where a website's server is located. Sites protected by IP address whitelisting only are unaffected by this vulnerability. This vulnerability has been fixed on version 0.3.4 of django-basic-auth-ip-whitelist. Update to version 0.3.4 as soon as possible and change basic authentication username and password configured on a Django project using this package. A workaround without upgrading to version 0.3.4 is to stop using basic authentication and use the IP whitelisting component only. It can be achieved by not setting BASIC_AUTH_LOGIN and BASIC_AUTH_PASSWORD in Django project settings.

Category

2.2
CVSS
Severity: Low
CVSS 3.1 •
CVSS 2.0 •
EPSS 0.11%
Third-Party Advisory github.com
Affected: tm-kn django-basic-auth-ip-whitelist
Published at:
Updated at:

References

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the severity of CVE-2020-4071?
CVE-2020-4071 has been scored as a low severity vulnerability.
How to fix CVE-2020-4071?
To fix CVE-2020-4071, make sure you are using an up-to-date version of the affected component(s) by checking the vendor release notes. As for now, there are no other specific guidelines available.
Is CVE-2020-4071 being actively exploited in the wild?
As for now, there are no information to confirm that CVE-2020-4071 is being actively exploited. According to its EPSS score, there is a ~0% probability that this vulnerability will be exploited by malicious actors in the next 30 days.
What software or system is affected by CVE-2020-4071?
CVE-2020-4071 affects tm-kn django-basic-auth-ip-whitelist.
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