GitHub CLI: Partial token disclosure in `gh auth status` output

CISA KEV is observed exploitation evidence. FIRST EPSS is a dated prediction of exploitation in the next 30 days. Missing scores are unknown. This collector requests predictions only for explicit CVE aliases in the public NuGet archive; Microsoft release views retain their existing prediction scope.

No collected risk observation for these identifiers. This does not establish absence of exploitation or a zero probability.

GitHub CLI (gh) is GitHub's official command line tool. Prior to version 2.97.0, gh auth status masked only the characters after the last underscore in certain fine-grained personal access tokens and GitHub App tokens. As a result, part of an affected token could appear in terminal or CI output that is captured or shared. Authenticated users are affected if they ran gh auth status (without the --show-token flag) with a token type whose format contains an underscore after the prefix. This includes fine-grained personal access tokens (github_pat_*) and GitHub App installation and user access tokens (ghs_*, ghu_*; for example, ghs_<APPID>_<JWT>), as well as the Actions GITHUB_TOKEN. Classic tokens such as gho_* and ghp_* have an underscore-free body and are not affected. This issue is fixed in version 2.97.0.

Source published

6 Aug 2026 17:45:35 UTC

Source modified

7 Aug 2026 17:45:03 UTC

Observed here

23 Oct 2026 15:48:27 UTC

Source terms

CVE Program Terms of Use

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CVSS 3.1 · 3.3 CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N

GitHub CLI (gh) is GitHub's official command line tool. Prior to version 2.97.0, gh auth status masked only the characters after the last underscore in certain fine-grained personal access tokens and GitHub App tokens. As a result, part of an affected token could appear in terminal or CI output that is captured or shared. Authenticated users are affected if they ran gh auth status (without the --show-token flag) with a token type whose format contains an underscore after the prefix. This includes fine-grained personal access tokens (github_pat_*) and GitHub App installation and user access tokens (ghs_*, ghu_*; for example, ghs_<APPID>_<JWT>), as well as the Actions GITHUB_TOKEN. Classic tokens such as gho_* and ghp_* have an underscore-free body and are not affected. This issue is fixed in version 2.97.0.

Source published

Aug 6, 2026, 5:45:35 PM (timezone not stated)

Source modified

Aug 7, 2026, 5:45:03 PM (timezone not stated)

Observed here

7 Nov 2026 13:31:05 UTC

Source terms

ENISA EUVD · source terms and attribution apply

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EUVD CVSS 3.1 · 3.3 CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N

GitHub CLI (gh) is GitHub's official command line tool. Prior to version 2.97.0, gh auth status masked only the characters after the last underscore in certain fine-grained personal access tokens and GitHub App tokens. As a result, part of an affected token could appear in terminal or CI output that is captured or shared. Authenticated users are affected if they ran gh auth status (without the --show-token flag) with a token type whose format contains an underscore after the prefix. This includes fine-grained personal access tokens (github_pat_*) and GitHub App installation and user access tokens (ghs_*, ghu_*; for example, ghs_<APPID>_<JWT>), as well as the Actions GITHUB_TOKEN. Classic tokens such as gho_* and ghp_* have an underscore-free body and are not affected. This issue is fixed in version 2.97.0.

Source published

6 Aug 2026 22:18:13 UTC

Source modified

10 Sep 2026 20:36:14 UTC

Observed here

25 Oct 2026 15:18:45 UTC

Source terms

NIST NVD usage terms; underlying source attribution retained

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CVSS 3.1 · [email protected] · Secondary · 3.3 CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N

### Summary A security vulnerability has been identified in GitHub CLI where `gh auth status` could potentially print a portion of the authentication token in plaintext, depending on the lexical structure of the token. Affected users: - Authenticated users who ran `gh auth status` (without the `--show-token` flag) with a token type whose format contains an underscore after the prefix. This includes fine-grained personal access tokens (`github_pat_*`) and GitHub App installation/user access tokens (`ghs_*`, `ghu_*`, e.g., `ghs_<APPID>_<JWT>`), including the Actions `GITHUB_TOKEN`. Classic tokens such as `gho_*` and `ghp_*` have an underscore-free body and are not affected. ### Details The vulnerability stems from the way GitHub CLI masks the authentication token when reporting authentication state: 1. A user runs `gh auth status` without `--show-token`, expecting the token to be fully masked. 2. The masking logic redacts only the characters that follow the last underscore in the token, instead of redacting everything after the token prefix. 3. The partially masked token is written to the command output, where it can be captured or shared. Because `gh auth status` is a diagnostic command commonly run interactively and inside automated environments, the leaked token characters can end up in CI/CD job logs, terminal scrollback, screen recordings, screenshots, or pasted output shared in bug reports and support requests. In `v2.97.0`, GitHub CLI fully masks the token in `gh auth status` output, preserving only the known token prefix and redacting the remainder unless `--show-token` is explicitly provided. ### Impact Running `gh auth status` in a context where the output is captured, logged, or shared could leak a portion of an affected token. The affected token types are fine-grained personal access tokens (`github_pat_*`) and GitHub App installation/user access tokens (`ghs_*`, `ghu_*`, e.g., `ghs_<APPID>_<JWT>`), including the Actions `GITHUB_TOKEN`. Installation and Actions tokens are short-lived, which narrows the window in which a recovered token could be reused. See [GitHub credential types](https://docs.github.com/en/organizations/managing-programmatic-access-to-your-organization/github-credential-types#credential-types-overview). ### Remediation and Mitigation 1. Upgrade `gh` to `v2.97.0`. 2. Rotate any affected token whose masked `gh auth status` output may have been captured or shared: - **Fine-grained personal access tokens (`github_pat_*`):** regenerate the token from your account settings. See [Managing your personal access tokens](https://docs.github.com/en/authentication/keeping-your-account-and-data-secure/managing-your-personal-access-tokens). - **GitHub App installation/user access tokens (`ghs_*`, `ghu_*`, e.g., `ghs_<APPID>_<JWT>`):** these are short-lived and rotate automatically (See [GitHub credential types](https://docs.github.com/en/organizations/managing-programmatic-access-to-your-organization/github-credential-types#credential-types-overview)). If you believe a token was captured while still valid, you can revoke it immediately using the [Revoke an installation access token](https://docs.github.com/en/rest/apps/installations#revoke-an-installation-access-token) REST endpoint (`DELETE /installation/token`). To cut off a third-party app's access more broadly, suspend or uninstall the app from the web UI. See [Reviewing and modifying installed GitHub Apps](https://docs.github.com/en/apps/using-github-apps/reviewing-and-modifying-installed-github-apps). - **Actions `GITHUB_TOKEN`:** this token is automatically invalidated when the job finishes, so no manual revocation is normally required. See [GitHub credential types](https://docs.github.com/en/organizations/managing-programmatic-access-to-your-organization/github-credential-types#credential-types-overview). 3. Until you can upgrade, avoid running `gh auth status` in contexts where the output is captured or shared, and manually redact the token line before sharing any output.

Source published

15 Oct 2026 18:05:19 UTC

Source modified

19 Oct 2026 21:41:21 UTC

Observed here

24 Oct 2026 13:19:41 UTC

Source terms

GitHub Advisory Database · CC-BY-4.0

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CVSS_V3 · CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N

Publisher rating · LOW

GitHub CLI partially discloses authentication tokens in `gh auth status` output in github.com/cli/cli

Source published

19 Oct 2026 21:08:35 UTC

Source modified

19 Oct 2026 21:31:37 UTC

Observed here

24 Oct 2026 13:19:41 UTC

Source terms

OSV · upstream source license applies

Original source record · Cite this exact observation · Complete original publisher JSON

This view projects the publisher's source fields for reading; the original JSON retains additional fields and CVE enrichment containers. Attribution: osv · OSV · upstream source license applies. Source text is retained; field grouping and change labels are provided by ChangeIntel.