Vulnerability in Opencast (CVE-2020-5229)
Summary
Vulnerability in Opencast (CVE-2020-5229). Confidential information can be exposed externally. Exploitable via admin.
Original description
The description as published by the source.
Impact
User passwords are stored in the database using the rather outdated and cryptographically insecure MD5 hash algorithm. Furthermore, the hashes are salted using the username instead of a random salt, causing hashes for users with the same username and password to collide which is problematic especially for popular users like the default admin user.
This essentially means that for an attacker, it might be feasible to reconstruct a user's password given access to these hashes.
Note that attackers needing access to the hashes means that they must gain access to the database in which these are stored first to be able to start cracking the passwords.
Patches
The problem is addressed in Opencast 8.1 which now uses the modern and much stronger bcrypt password hashing algorithm for storing passwords. Note, that old hashes remain MD5 until the password is updated.
For a list of users whose password hashes are stored using MD5, take a look at the /user-utils/users/md5.json REST endpoint.
Workarounds
There is no workaround.
References
For more information
If you have any questions or comments about this advisory:
- Open an issue in opencast/opencast
- For security-relevant information, emai…
Source: OSV.dev (Open Source Vulnerabilities) NVD GitHub Advisory OSV
Auto-generated summary
Assembled by SecPulse from the source data (CVSS, CWE, affected versions) using templates — no AI involved. Check the original description and references below for exact details.
A vulnerability tracked as CVE-2020-5229 has been found in Opencast.
Attackers can target a specific entry point like admin over the network to misuse the product.
Confidential information can be exposed externally.
What to do: apply the vendor's official patched release.
If unsure, ask your IT team or search "Opencast CVE-2020-5229" on the vendor's site.
CVE-2020-5229 (Opencast)
Attack vector: remote (network-reachable) / no user interaction
Attack surface: admin
Plan: 1) Audit SBOM/dependencies, 2) Stage→prod upgrade, 3) Add WAF/proxy monitoring on affected endpoints, 4) Hunt IOCs in logs.
Refs: see the GHSA / vendor advisory / patched release linked on this page.
A vulnerability (unclassified) exists in Opencast. Attackers reach the vulnerable code path via admin.
Check the vendor advisory for the affected versions of Opencast. Attack surface: admin.
Severity: ?. Confidential information can be exposed externally.
Update to the patched release per vendor advisory.
Until the patch is applied: disable the affected feature, apply WAF rules, or restrict access via network ACLs.
Search webserver/proxy logs for unusual request patterns matching this CVE's known IOCs. Run grep -r 'Opencast' . against your dependency files (package-lock.json, requirements.txt, go.sum) to find affected services.
Response actions
Concrete steps and command examples for SOC/SRE teams to execute in order
-
1Identify exposure identify
grep -r 'Opencast' . | grep -v node_modulesリポジトリと本番環境の依存ファイル (package-lock.json / requirements.txt / go.sum / Gemfile.lock 等) で
Opencastを grep し、稼働しているサービス・バージョンを把握する。 -
2Post-deployment verification verify
Confirm patched version is live in productionパッチ適用後、ステージングで PoC または同等の悪用パターンを再現して脆弱性が閉じたことを確認。本番ではアクセスログ・WAF でアラート再発が無いか継続監視。
Affected packages
References
- advisory nvd.nist.gov
- web github.com
- web github.com