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HexpmApplication · Hex

CVE-2026-21622

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-03-05
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 2026-03-05 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click Patch available

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
Insufficient Session Expiration vulnerability in hexpm hexpm/hexpm ('Elixir.Hexpm.Accounts.PasswordReset' module) allows Account Takeover. Password reset tokens generated via the "Reset your password" flow do not expire. When a user requests a password reset, Hex sends an email containing a reset link with a token. This token remains valid indefinitely until used. There is no time-based expiration enforced. If a user's historical emails are exposed through a data breach (e.g., a leaked mailbox archive), any unused password reset email contained in that dataset could be used by an attacker to reset the victim's password. The attacker does not need current access to the victim's email account, only access to a previously leaked copy of the reset email. This vulnerability is associated with program files lib/hexpm/accounts/password_reset.ex and program routines 'Elixir.Hexpm.Accounts.PasswordReset':can_reset?/3. This issue affects hexpm: from 617e44c71f1dd9043870205f371d375c5c4d886d before bb0e42091995945deef10556f58d046a52eb7884.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

Insufficient session expiration in hexpm's password reset module allows account takeover. The can_reset?/3 function validates password reset tokens without checking expiration time, leaving tokens valid indefinitely. Attackers with access to leaked historical emails containing reset links can reset victim passwords at any time.

MitigationImplement time-based expiration for password reset tokens in the can_reset?/3 function, typically setting expiration between 1-24 hours from token generation, and update token generation to store creation timestamp.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
HexpmApplication
Affected:>= 2025-10-01, < 2026-03-05

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

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

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify if Hex Hexpm is in use
    Determine whether your environment runs the hexpm package manager server. This may be a self-hosted Hex pm instance or a system using hexpm libraries.
    Affected if You run or host hexpm services
  2. Determine installed hexpm version
    Check the running hexpm application version. This is typically found in the application metadata, version file, or runtime information. Common methods include checking the deployed artifact version, running `hex version` if applicable, or reviewing deployment manifests.
    Affected if The installed version cannot be determined or is unknown
  3. Compare version against affected range
    Check if the installed hexpm version falls within >= 2025-10-01 and < 2026-03-05. This specific date-based version range indicates the vulnerable release window.
    Affected if Your hexpm version is 2025-10-01 or later but earlier than 2026-03-05

You are affected if you run a self-hosted hexpm instance with version 2025-10-01 through 2026-03-04, as the password reset token validation in can_reset?/3 lacks expiration checks.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 2026-03-05 or later
Fixed in 2026-03-05
Vendor patch github.com →
Interim mitigation

Implement time-based expiration for password reset tokens in the can_reset?/3 function, typically setting expiration between 1-24 hours from token generation, and update token generation to store creation timestamp.

Recommended fix High confidence

bb0e42091995945deef10556f58d046a52eb7884 (or upgrade to version >= 2026-03-05)

  1. 1. Review the vulnerable code in lib/hexpm/accounts/password_reset.ex, specifically the can_reset?/3 function which lacks token expiration validation
  2. 2. Apply the vendor patch from commit bb0e42091995945deef10556f58d046a52eb7884: https://github.com/hexpm/hexpm/commit/bb0e42091995945deef10556f58d046a52eb7884
  3. 3. Verify the patch adds time-based expiration logic to password reset tokens in the can_reset?/3 function
  4. 4. After applying the patch, redeploy the hexpm service
  5. 5. Test the password reset flow to confirm tokens now expire after a defined time window

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Hexpm Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,930
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2026-21622 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data