Description

authentik is an open-source identity provider. Prior to 2026.2.6 and 2026.5.5, the Remote Access Control endpoint list returns every configured endpoint to any authenticated user regardless of which applications the user may access, and the response includes connection settings that can contain stored credentials. The endpoint listing does not apply the access controls governing the endpoints, and the connection flow does not confirm that an endpoint belongs to the Remote Access Control application through which it was launched. Any authenticated user can therefore read every endpoint together with its host and stored credentials and can open a connection to an endpoint belonging to another application. This exposes stored credentials for managed RDP, SSH, and VNC targets and grants interactive access to systems the user was never authorized to reach. Deployments that do not use the enterprise Remote Access Control provider are not affected. This issue is fixed in versions 2026.2.6 and 2026.5.5.

Executive Summary

Technical Details

Mitigations

References

Additional Metadata

{
  "score": "8.8",
  "pubDate": "2026-08-18T17:16:59.813Z",
  "pubdate": "2026-08-18T17:16:59.813Z",
  "executiveSummary": "authentik prior to versions 2026.2.6 and 2026.5.5 suffers from an authorization bypass vulnerability within the Remote Access Control endpoint list. The vulnerability allows any authenticated user to retrieve every configured endpoint regardless of assigned application access permissions. The returned response payloads include sensitive connection settings and stored credentials for managed RDP, SSH, and VNC targets. Furthermore, the connection flow fails to validate whether an initiated endpoint belongs to the specific Remote Access Control application through which it was launched. This grants unauthorized users interactive access to systems they are not permitted to reach. The risk implications are severe, exposing critical infrastructure credentials and enabling unauthorized remote access across managed environments. Exploitation requires standard authentication to the authentik instance. Deployments not utilizing the enterprise Remote Access Control provider remain unaffected.",
  "technicalDetails": "The vulnerability resides in the Remote Access Control endpoint management component of authentik, specifically affecting versions prior to 2026.2.6 and 2026.5.5. The root cause stems from a complete lack of authorization enforcement during endpoint enumeration and connection initiation flows. Specifically, the Remote Access Control endpoint list handler fails to apply the access control lists governing individual endpoints, returning the complete set of configured endpoints to any successfully authenticated user regardless of their authorization scope.\nDuring enumeration, the API response improperly serializes connection settings that contain plaintext or reversibly stored credentials for managed RDP, SSH, and VNC targets. Additionally, the connection establishment mechanism lacks integrity validation, failing to confirm that a requested endpoint genuinely belongs to the specific Remote Access Control application context through which the user initiated the connection flow.\nThe attack flow proceeds as follows: First, an authenticated user with low-privilege access or standard user rights sends a request to the vulnerable Remote Access Control endpoint list. Second, the backend processes the request without validating authorization context and returns a JSON payload containing all global endpoints along with sensitive host configurations and stored credentials. Third, the attacker parses the response to extract credentials for high-value targets such as RDP, SSH, and VNC endpoints. Fourth, the attacker initiates a connection payload referencing an arbitrary endpoint ID belonging to a restricted application. Because the connection flow omits validation against the launching application context, the system accepts the request. Finally, the attacker achieves unauthorized interactive access to external or internal systems they were never authorized to reach, leading to a complete compromise of confidentiality and integrity for the affected remote targets."
}