CVE Catalog

CVE-2026-55493

MediumCVSS 6.5
Published: Updated: Translated: NVD NIST

Exploitation Probability (EPSS)

Low risk
0.30%

23th percentile - higher than 23% of all known CVEs

Summary

In HotCRP, the `cmt:USER` search term checks whether a comment is visible to the searching user but fails to check whether the commenter's identity should be visible. An authenticated user can therefore infer the author of an anonymous comment, compromising reviewer anonymity.

Risk Assessment

Breaching reviewer anonymity can undermine trust in the review process and enable undue influence. Comments the user cannot see remain excluded from search results.

Recommendation

Update HotCRP to a version containing the commenter identity check fix (version 3.3 or later, per the verified repository tag).

Related vulnerabilities

Original NVD description (English source)

HotCRP is conference review software. Starting with 2.101, the `cmt:` search term checks whether a comment is visible to the searching user but fails to check whether the commenter's identity should be visible. A `cmt:USER` search can therefore match a paper with a visible comment authored by USER even when the comment is supposed to be anonymous. An authenticated user with access to the search can infer the author of an anonymous comment, compromising reviewer anonymity. Comments that the user cannot see remain excluded from search results. The advisory prose identifies 3.3 as fixed, its affected-version metadata excludes 3.3, and the verified repository tag 3.3 already contains the identity-check fix; however, its patched-version metadata instead lists 3.3.1. This fixed-version source conflict remains unresolved.

Vulnerability data from NVD (NIST) · CISA KEV · EPSS