Password Hashing: Do not use MD5

Exploitation

No confirmed exploitation recorded. Patch Next marks exploitation only from CISA KEV.

CVSS

7.7 · CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N

EPSS

• CVE-2020-5229: 0.63% estimated exploitation activity in the next 30 days; percentile 50.05 (FIRST EPSS, 2026-11-03). This is a model estimate, not proof of exploitation or customer exposure.

As published by the source; long descriptions are shortened.

Impact User passwords are stored in the database using the rather outdated and cryptographically insecure MD5 hash algorithm.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.…

Published by the source

30 Jan 2020, 21:21 UTC

Last modified by the source

9 Jan 2023, 05:02 UTC

Source last checked

26 Oct 2026, 15:52 UTC

1. Revision 1 · created · 26 Oct 2026

   Published from ghsa record GHSA-h362-m8f2-5x7c

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# Patch Next advisory brief: CVE-2020-5229

Advisory: Password Hashing: Do not use MD5
IDs: CVE-2020-5229, GHSA-h362-m8f2-5x7c
Record: https://patchnext.com/advisories/cve-2020-5229 (revision 1, source checked 26 Oct 2026, 15:52 UTC)
Inventory: none attached. This brief comes from a public page and does not say whether any deployment is affected.
Severity: High (CVSS 7.7)
Exploitation: no confirmed exploitation recorded. Patch Next confirms exploitation only from CISA KEV.
Vendor response: Vendor fix available; fixed versions by package: org.opencastproject:opencast-common-jpa-impl 8.1, 7.6. A vendor fix does not mean a deployment is fixed.

## Affected components
- Maven org.opencastproject:opencast-common-jpa-impl: affected < 7.6; >= 8.0, < 8.1; fixed in 8.1, 7.6

## Suggested inspection (read-only)
- Maven org.opencastproject:opencast-common-jpa-impl: check the installed version with your package manager.

## Supported action
Upgrade each affected component to a fixed version on its release line. For a transitive dependency, upgrade the parent package or add an override or constraint, then regenerate the lockfile. Redeploy every environment that ran an affected version.

## Required regression checks
- Run the test suite and a production build.
- Exercise the features that depend on org.opencastproject:opencast-common-jpa-impl.
- Repeat the inspection and confirm that only fixed versions remain installed.

## Rollback considerations
- Keep the previous lockfile and deployment artifact. Rolling back reinstates the vulnerable version, so apply any documented mitigation while you fix forward.

## Unresolved questions
- Which deployments run an affected version?
- Exploitation status can change. Check again before lowering the priority.
- Mark the work resolved only after the fixed version is verified in production.

## Sources
- Verified: https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-h362-m8f2-5x7c (GitHub-reviewed advisory GHSA-h362-m8f2-5x7c lists affected ranges: Maven org.opencastproject:opencast-common-jpa-impl >=0 =8.0 <8.1)

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