CVE-2026-3277
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 · uneditedThe OpenID Connect (OIDC) authentication configuration in PowerShell Universal before 2026.1.3 stores the OIDC client secret in cleartext in the .universal/authentication.ps1 script, which allows an attacker with read access to that file to obtain the OIDC client credentials
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 confidenceThe OIDC authentication configuration in PowerShell Universal stores the client secret in cleartext within the .universal/authentication.ps1 script file. Any attacker with read access to this file can obtain the OIDC client credentials.
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< 2026.1.3CVSS 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
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check PowerShell Universal versionRun 'Get-UAServerVersion' or check the installed version via the PowerShell Universal admin dashboard, MSI properties, or installed packagesAffected if Version is below 2026.1.3 (vulnerable versions)
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Locate the authentication configuration fileCheck for the presence of '.universal/authentication.ps1' in the PowerShell Universal application directoryAffected if The file .universal/authentication.ps1 exists on the system
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Inspect OIDC client secret storageOpen the .universal/authentication.ps1 file and search for lines containing 'ClientSecret', 'client_secret', or '-ClientSecret' with a string value. Check if the secret appears in cleartext (not referenced from a vault or environment variable)Affected if A cleartext ClientSecret value is found directly in the authentication.ps1 file (e.g., -ClientSecret 'actualsecretvalue')
You are affected if running PowerShell Universal version 2026.1.2 or earlier with OIDC authentication enabled and a cleartext client secret present in the .universal/authentication.ps1 file.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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 · scoped2026.1.3
Upgrade to PowerShell Universal 2026.1.3 or later, which should address the cleartext storage issue. Rotate any exposed OIDC client credentials as a precautionary measure.
2026.1.3
- Check current PowerShell Universal version using Get-PSUVersion or the admin dashboard
- Backup the existing .universal/authentication.ps1 file and any other configuration files
- Upgrade PowerShell Universal to version 2026.1.3 or later
- After upgrade, verify the OIDC configuration is no longer storing the client secret in cleartext in the authentication.ps1 file
- If using a script-based approach, ensure any OIDC client secrets are now stored using secure methods (e.g., environment variables, encrypted configuration)
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation3.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,800.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2026-3277 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2026-3277 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- 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