GHSA-jhm7-29pj-4xvf

Summary

The token exchange path accepts RFC7636-invalid code_verifier values (including one-character strings) for S256 PKCE flows.
Because short/weak verifiers are accepted and failed verifier attempts do not consume the authorization code, an attacker who intercepts an authorization code can brute-force code_verifier guesses online until token issuance succeeds.

Root cause

1. lib/pkce/pkce.js (getHashForCodeChallenge) only checks that verifier is a non-empty string before hashing for S256; it does not enforce RFC7636 ABNF (43..128 unreserved chars).
2. lib/grant-types/authorization-code-grant-type.js compares hash(code_verifier) to stored codeChallenge without validating verifier format/length.
3. In AuthorizationCodeGrantType.handle, authorization code revocation happens after verifier validation. Invalid guesses fail before revoke, so the same code can be retried repeatedly.

Steps to Reproduce

Setup

• PKCE authorization code exists with:
  • codeChallengeMethod = "S256"
  • codeChallenge = BASE64URL(SHA256("z")) (verifier is one character, RFC-invalid)
• Attacker has intercepted the authorization code value.

Reproduction

1. Send repeated token requests with guessed code_verifier values:

POST /token HTTP/1.1
Host: oauth.example
Content-Type: application/x-www-form-urlencoded

grant_type=authorization_code&
client_id=client1&
client_secret=s3cret&
code=stolen-auth-code&
redirect_uri=https://client.example/callback&
code_verifier=<guess>

1. Observe invalid guesses return invalid_grant.
2. Continue guessing (a..z).
3. When code_verifier=z, token issuance succeeds and returns bearer tokens.

Confirmed PoC output

BRUTE_FORCE_SUCCESS { tries: 26, guess: 'z', status: 200, tokenIssued: true }

Impact

An intercepted authorization code can be redeemed by brute-forcing low-entropy verifiers that the server should have rejected under RFC7636.
This weakens PKCE’s protection goal and allows token theft when clients generate short/predictable verifiers.

Recommended Fix

1. Enforce pkce.codeChallengeMatchesABNF(request.body.code_verifier) in authorization code token exchange before hashing/comparison.
2. Reject verifier values outside RFC7636 charset/length (43..128 unreserved).
3. Invalidate authorization codes on failed verifier attempts (or add strict retry limits) to prevent online guessing.