TOTP secret prediction via noncryptographic random generation
Published May 21, 2026 · Updated May 21, 2026
Insufficient entropy in Authen::TOTP before 0.1.1 allows remote attackers to predict TOTP secrets generated by the module. The Authen::TOTP::gen_secret routine uses Perl's noncryptographic rand function to choose the secret length and each character from a fixed alphabet. Applications are exposed when they rely on a module-generated secret rather than supplying one, and prediction compromises the confidentiality of the TOTP factor.
Summary
What happened
Insufficient entropy in Authen::TOTP before 0.1.1 allows remote attackers to predict TOTP secrets generated by the module. The Authen::TOTP::gen_secret routine uses Perl's noncryptographic rand function to choose the secret length and each character from a fixed alphabet. Applications are exposed when they rely on a module-generated secret rather than supplying one, and prediction compromises the confidentiality of the TOTP factor.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-46473
- Published
- May 21, 2026
- Updated
- May 21, 2026
- Vendor
- Thanos Chatziathanassiou
- Product
- Authen::TOTP
- Classifications
- CWE-331
- Attack vector
- network
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- May 21, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- May 21, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
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Is a vulnerable build present?
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- Affected versionversion=0 <0.1.1
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What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
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Attacks
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