CVE-2026-85394
python-jose accepts DER public keys as HMAC secrets enabling JWT algorithm confusion.
Is CVE-2026-85394 being exploited?
Not confirmed. CVE-2026-85394 does not appear in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, which records only exploitation that has been observed and reported publicly. That is evidence of absence of a report, not evidence the flaw is unattacked. EPSS currently estimates a 0.22% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
How severe is CVE-2026-85394?
CVE-2026-85394 is rated Critical with a CVSS score of 9.3. Severity describes how bad exploitation would be, not how likely it is: pair it with exploitation evidence before deciding what to patch first.
Is there a patch for CVE-2026-85394?
Yes. A fix has been recorded for CVE-2026-85394. The vendor advisory is the authority on the exact fixed version — apply it from there rather than from a summary.
What does CVE-2026-85394 affect?
CVE-2026-85394 affects python-jose <= 3.5.0, Applications using python-jose for JWT validation. Confirm the exact affected versions against the vendor advisory before deciding you are exposed.
What should I do about CVE-2026-85394?
Upgrade python-jose to the patched release and enforce explicit JWT alg whitelist
Exploitation status reflects CISA's KEV catalog as we last synced it. Check the catalog directly.
Attackers holding the service public key can forge HS256 JWTs that verify if alg is not explicitly restricted, enabling auth bypass.
Immediate action required
- affected<= 3.5.0
As published in the CVE Program record. A version outside these ranges is not a statement that it is unaffected — vendors sometimes understate a range, and distribution-backported builds carry upstream numbers that do not reflect what was patched into them.