Findings

CVE-2026-6478

Covert timing channel in comparison of MD5-hashed password in PostgreSQL authentication allows an attacker to recover user credentials sufficient to authenticate.

Published May 14, 2026 · updated Aug 25, 2026 · postgresql postgresql

Covert timing channel in comparison of MD5-hashed password in PostgreSQL authentication allows an attacker to recover user credentials sufficient to authenticate. This does not affect scram-sha-256 passwords, the default in all supported releases. However, current databases may have MD5-hashed passwords originating in upgrades from PostgreSQL 13 or earlier. Versions before PostgreSQL 18.4, 17.10, 16.14, 15.18, and 14.23 are affected.

Code

The project this record applies to. Exploit listings stay in References.

No public source repository is identified for this product.

Timeline

Detection, updates, and resolution for this record.

  1. May 14, 2026 · NIST NVD

    Detected

    Covert timing channel in comparison of MD5-hashed password in PostgreSQL authentication allows an attacker to recover user credentials sufficient to authenticate. This does not affect scram-sha-256 passwords, the default in all supported releases. However, current databases may have MD5-hashed passwords originating in upgrades from PostgreSQL 13 or earlier. Versions before PostgreSQL 18.4, 17.10,

  2. Aug 25, 2026 · NIST NVD

    Updated

    Covert timing channel in comparison of MD5-hashed password in PostgreSQL authentication allows an attacker to recover user credentials sufficient to authenticate. This does not affect scram-sha-256 passwords, the default in all supported releases. However, current databases may have MD5-hashed passwords originating in upgrades from PostgreSQL 13 or earlier. Versions before PostgreSQL 18.4, 17.10,

Affected

  • cpe postgresql/postgresqlversion unspecified

Sources

  • CVE.orgVulnerability recordCVE-2026-6478

    Official CVE identifier

    cve.org
  • NIST NVDVulnerability recordCVE-2026-6478

    Covert timing channel in comparison of MD5-hashed password in PostgreSQL authentication allows an attacker to recover user credentials sufficient to authenticate. This does not affect scram-sha-256 passwords, the default in all supported releases. However, current databases may

    nvd.nist.gov

References

CVE-2026-6478 · ZeroDay Findings