CVE-2026-40165 (GCVE-0-2026-40165)

Vulnerability from cvelistv5 – Published: 2026-05-20 23:35 – Updated: 2026-05-21 14:13
VLAI
Title
authentik: SAML NameID XML Comment Injection Enables Authentication Bypass via Identifier Truncation
Summary
authentik is an open-source identity provider. Versions 2025.12.4 and prior, and versions 2026.2.0-rc1 through 2026.2.2 were vulnerable to Authentication Bypass through SAML NameID XML Comment Injection. Due to how authentik extracted the NameID value from a SAML assertion, it was possible for an attacker to trick authentik into only seeing a part of the NameID value, potentially allowing an attacker to gain access to other accounts. This issue could be exploited on an authentik instance with a SAML Source, where the attacker had an account on the SAML Source and the ability to modify their NameID value (commonly username or E-mail), and XML Signing was enabled. The attacker could modify the SAML assertion given to authentik by injecting a comment within the NameID value, which effectively truncated the NameID value to the snippet before the comment, and gave the attacker access to any user account. This issue has been fixed in versions 2025.12.5 and 2026.2.3.
SSVC
Exploitation: none Automatable: no Technical Impact: total
CISA Coordinator (v2.0.3)
CWE
  • CWE-287 - Improper Authentication
  • CWE-91 - XML Injection (aka Blind XPath Injection)
  • CWE-436 - Interpretation Conflict
Assigner
Impacted products
Vendor Product Version
goauthentik authentik Affected: < 2025.12.5
Affected: >= 2026.2.0-rc1, < 2026.2.3
Create a notification for this product.
Show details on NVD website

{
  "containers": {
    "adp": [
      {
        "metrics": [
          {
            "other": {
              "content": {
                "id": "CVE-2026-40165",
                "options": [
                  {
                    "Exploitation": "none"
                  },
                  {
                    "Automatable": "no"
                  },
                  {
                    "Technical Impact": "total"
                  }
                ],
                "role": "CISA Coordinator",
                "timestamp": "2026-05-21T14:13:10.961177Z",
                "version": "2.0.3"
              },
              "type": "ssvc"
            }
          }
        ],
        "providerMetadata": {
          "dateUpdated": "2026-05-21T14:13:20.329Z",
          "orgId": "134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0",
          "shortName": "CISA-ADP"
        },
        "title": "CISA ADP Vulnrichment"
      }
    ],
    "cna": {
      "affected": [
        {
          "product": "authentik",
          "vendor": "goauthentik",
          "versions": [
            {
              "status": "affected",
              "version": "\u003c 2025.12.5"
            },
            {
              "status": "affected",
              "version": "\u003e= 2026.2.0-rc1, \u003c 2026.2.3"
            }
          ]
        }
      ],
      "descriptions": [
        {
          "lang": "en",
          "value": "authentik is an open-source identity provider. Versions 2025.12.4 and prior, and versions 2026.2.0-rc1 through 2026.2.2 were vulnerable to Authentication Bypass through SAML NameID XML Comment Injection. Due to how authentik extracted the NameID value from a SAML assertion, it was possible for an attacker to trick authentik into only seeing a part of the NameID value, potentially allowing an attacker to gain access to other accounts. This issue could be exploited on an authentik instance with a SAML Source, where the attacker had an account on the SAML Source and the ability to modify their NameID value (commonly username or E-mail), and XML Signing was enabled. The attacker could modify the SAML assertion given to authentik by injecting a comment within the NameID value, which effectively truncated the NameID value to the snippet before the comment, and gave the attacker access to any user account. This issue has been fixed in versions 2025.12.5 and 2026.2.3."
        }
      ],
      "metrics": [
        {
          "cvssV3_1": {
            "attackComplexity": "HIGH",
            "attackVector": "NETWORK",
            "availabilityImpact": "NONE",
            "baseScore": 8.7,
            "baseSeverity": "HIGH",
            "confidentialityImpact": "HIGH",
            "integrityImpact": "HIGH",
            "privilegesRequired": "NONE",
            "scope": "CHANGED",
            "userInteraction": "NONE",
            "vectorString": "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N",
            "version": "3.1"
          }
        }
      ],
      "problemTypes": [
        {
          "descriptions": [
            {
              "cweId": "CWE-287",
              "description": "CWE-287: Improper Authentication",
              "lang": "en",
              "type": "CWE"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "descriptions": [
            {
              "cweId": "CWE-91",
              "description": "CWE-91: XML Injection (aka Blind XPath Injection)",
              "lang": "en",
              "type": "CWE"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "descriptions": [
            {
              "cweId": "CWE-436",
              "description": "CWE-436: Interpretation Conflict",
              "lang": "en",
              "type": "CWE"
            }
          ]
        }
      ],
      "providerMetadata": {
        "dateUpdated": "2026-05-20T23:35:18.309Z",
        "orgId": "a0819718-46f1-4df5-94e2-005712e83aaa",
        "shortName": "GitHub_M"
      },
      "references": [
        {
          "name": "https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/security/advisories/GHSA-9wj8-xv4r-qwrp",
          "tags": [
            "x_refsource_CONFIRM"
          ],
          "url": "https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/security/advisories/GHSA-9wj8-xv4r-qwrp"
        },
        {
          "name": "https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/commit/47dec5c6b7fb4a62bfad2ae8bddf002bde7ba774",
          "tags": [
            "x_refsource_MISC"
          ],
          "url": "https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/commit/47dec5c6b7fb4a62bfad2ae8bddf002bde7ba774"
        },
        {
          "name": "https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version%2F2025.12.5",
          "tags": [
            "x_refsource_MISC"
          ],
          "url": "https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version%2F2025.12.5"
        }
      ],
      "source": {
        "advisory": "GHSA-9wj8-xv4r-qwrp",
        "discovery": "UNKNOWN"
      },
      "title": "authentik: SAML NameID XML Comment Injection Enables Authentication Bypass via Identifier Truncation"
    }
  },
  "cveMetadata": {
    "assignerOrgId": "a0819718-46f1-4df5-94e2-005712e83aaa",
    "assignerShortName": "GitHub_M",
    "cveId": "CVE-2026-40165",
    "datePublished": "2026-05-20T23:35:18.309Z",
    "dateReserved": "2026-04-09T19:31:56.014Z",
    "dateUpdated": "2026-05-21T14:13:20.329Z",
    "state": "PUBLISHED"
  },
  "dataType": "CVE_RECORD",
  "dataVersion": "5.2",
  "vulnerability-lookup:meta": {
    "epss": {
      "cve": "CVE-2026-40165",
      "date": "2026-08-03",
      "epss": "0.00502",
      "percentile": "0.40192"
    },
    "nvd": "{\"cve\":{\"id\":\"CVE-2026-40165\",\"sourceIdentifier\":\"security-advisories@github.com\",\"published\":\"2026-05-21T00:16:28.290\",\"lastModified\":\"2026-07-23T15:10:00.137\",\"vulnStatus\":\"Deferred\",\"cveTags\":[],\"descriptions\":[{\"lang\":\"en\",\"value\":\"authentik is an open-source identity provider. Versions 2025.12.4 and prior, and versions 2026.2.0-rc1 through 2026.2.2 were vulnerable to Authentication Bypass through SAML NameID XML Comment Injection. Due to how authentik extracted the NameID value from a SAML assertion, it was possible for an attacker to trick authentik into only seeing a part of the NameID value, potentially allowing an attacker to gain access to other accounts. This issue could be exploited on an authentik instance with a SAML Source, where the attacker had an account on the SAML Source and the ability to modify their NameID value (commonly username or E-mail), and XML Signing was enabled. The attacker could modify the SAML assertion given to authentik by injecting a comment within the NameID value, which effectively truncated the NameID value to the snippet before the comment, and gave the attacker access to any user account. This issue has been fixed in versions 2025.12.5 and 2026.2.3.\"},{\"lang\":\"es\",\"value\":\"authentik es un proveedor de identidad de c\u00f3digo abierto. Las versiones 2025.12.4 y anteriores, y las versiones 2026.2.0-rc1 hasta la 2026.2.2 eran vulnerables a la omisi\u00f3n de autenticaci\u00f3n a trav\u00e9s de la inyecci\u00f3n de comentarios XML en el NameID de SAML. Debido a c\u00f3mo authentik extra\u00eda el valor NameID de una aserci\u00f3n SAML, era posible para un atacante enga\u00f1ar a authentik para que solo viera una parte del valor NameID, lo que potencialmente permit\u00eda a un atacante obtener acceso a otras cuentas. Este problema pod\u00eda ser explotado en una instancia de authentik con una fuente SAML, donde el atacante ten\u00eda una cuenta en la fuente SAML y la capacidad de modificar su valor NameID (com\u00fanmente nombre de usuario o correo electr\u00f3nico), y la firma XML estaba habilitada. El atacante pod\u00eda modificar la aserci\u00f3n SAML proporcionada a authentik inyectando un comentario dentro del valor NameID, lo que efectivamente truncaba el valor NameID al fragmento anterior al comentario, y le daba al atacante acceso a cualquier cuenta de usuario. Este problema ha sido solucionado en las versiones 2025.12.5 y 2026.2.3.\"}],\"affected\":[{\"source\":\"security-advisories@github.com\",\"affectedData\":[{\"vendor\":\"goauthentik\",\"product\":\"authentik\",\"versions\":[{\"version\":\"\u003c 2025.12.5\",\"status\":\"affected\"},{\"version\":\"\u003e= 2026.2.0-rc1, \u003c 2026.2.3\",\"status\":\"affected\"}]}]}],\"metrics\":{\"cvssMetricV31\":[{\"source\":\"security-advisories@github.com\",\"type\":\"Secondary\",\"cvssData\":{\"version\":\"3.1\",\"vectorString\":\"CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N\",\"baseScore\":8.7,\"baseSeverity\":\"HIGH\",\"attackVector\":\"NETWORK\",\"attackComplexity\":\"HIGH\",\"privilegesRequired\":\"NONE\",\"userInteraction\":\"NONE\",\"scope\":\"CHANGED\",\"confidentialityImpact\":\"HIGH\",\"integrityImpact\":\"HIGH\",\"availabilityImpact\":\"NONE\"},\"exploitabilityScore\":2.2,\"impactScore\":5.8}],\"ssvcV203\":[{\"source\":\"134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0\",\"ssvcData\":{\"timestamp\":\"2026-05-21T14:13:10.961177Z\",\"id\":\"CVE-2026-40165\",\"options\":[{\"exploitation\":\"none\"},{\"automatable\":\"no\"},{\"technicalImpact\":\"total\"}],\"role\":\"CISA Coordinator\",\"version\":\"2.0.3\"}}]},\"weaknesses\":[{\"source\":\"security-advisories@github.com\",\"type\":\"Secondary\",\"description\":[{\"lang\":\"en\",\"value\":\"CWE-91\"},{\"lang\":\"en\",\"value\":\"CWE-287\"},{\"lang\":\"en\",\"value\":\"CWE-436\"}]}],\"references\":[{\"url\":\"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/commit/47dec5c6b7fb4a62bfad2ae8bddf002bde7ba774\",\"source\":\"security-advisories@github.com\"},{\"url\":\"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version%2F2025.12.5\",\"source\":\"security-advisories@github.com\"},{\"url\":\"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/security/advisories/GHSA-9wj8-xv4r-qwrp\",\"source\":\"security-advisories@github.com\"}]}}",
    "redhat_vex": {
      "current_release_date": "2026-06-05T19:13:26+00:00",
      "cve": "CVE-2026-40165",
      "id": "CVE-2026-40165",
      "initial_release_date": "2026-01-01T00:00:00+00:00",
      "product_status:known_not_affected": "1",
      "source": "Red Hat CSAF VEX",
      "status": "final",
      "title": "authentik: SAML NameID XML Comment Injection Enables Authentication Bypass via Identifier Truncation",
      "url": "https://security.access.redhat.com/data/csaf/v2/vex/2026/cve-2026-40165.json",
      "version": "3"
    },
    "vulnrichment": {
      "containers": "{\"adp\": [{\"title\": \"CISA ADP Vulnrichment\", \"metrics\": [{\"other\": {\"type\": \"ssvc\", \"content\": {\"id\": \"CVE-2026-40165\", \"role\": \"CISA Coordinator\", \"options\": [{\"Exploitation\": \"none\"}, {\"Automatable\": \"no\"}, {\"Technical Impact\": \"total\"}], \"version\": \"2.0.3\", \"timestamp\": \"2026-05-21T14:13:10.961177Z\"}}}], \"providerMetadata\": {\"orgId\": \"134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0\", \"shortName\": \"CISA-ADP\", \"dateUpdated\": \"2026-05-21T14:13:16.426Z\"}}], \"cna\": {\"title\": \"authentik: SAML NameID XML Comment Injection Enables Authentication Bypass via Identifier Truncation\", \"source\": {\"advisory\": \"GHSA-9wj8-xv4r-qwrp\", \"discovery\": \"UNKNOWN\"}, \"metrics\": [{\"cvssV3_1\": {\"scope\": \"CHANGED\", \"version\": \"3.1\", \"baseScore\": 8.7, \"attackVector\": \"NETWORK\", \"baseSeverity\": \"HIGH\", \"vectorString\": \"CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N\", \"integrityImpact\": \"HIGH\", \"userInteraction\": \"NONE\", \"attackComplexity\": \"HIGH\", \"availabilityImpact\": \"NONE\", \"privilegesRequired\": \"NONE\", \"confidentialityImpact\": \"HIGH\"}}], \"affected\": [{\"vendor\": \"goauthentik\", \"product\": \"authentik\", \"versions\": [{\"status\": \"affected\", \"version\": \"\u003c 2025.12.5\"}, {\"status\": \"affected\", \"version\": \"\u003e= 2026.2.0-rc1, \u003c 2026.2.3\"}]}], \"references\": [{\"url\": \"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/security/advisories/GHSA-9wj8-xv4r-qwrp\", \"name\": \"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/security/advisories/GHSA-9wj8-xv4r-qwrp\", \"tags\": [\"x_refsource_CONFIRM\"]}, {\"url\": \"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/commit/47dec5c6b7fb4a62bfad2ae8bddf002bde7ba774\", \"name\": \"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/commit/47dec5c6b7fb4a62bfad2ae8bddf002bde7ba774\", \"tags\": [\"x_refsource_MISC\"]}, {\"url\": \"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version%2F2025.12.5\", \"name\": \"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version%2F2025.12.5\", \"tags\": [\"x_refsource_MISC\"]}], \"descriptions\": [{\"lang\": \"en\", \"value\": \"authentik is an open-source identity provider. Versions 2025.12.4 and prior, and versions 2026.2.0-rc1 through 2026.2.2 were vulnerable to Authentication Bypass through SAML NameID XML Comment Injection. Due to how authentik extracted the NameID value from a SAML assertion, it was possible for an attacker to trick authentik into only seeing a part of the NameID value, potentially allowing an attacker to gain access to other accounts. This issue could be exploited on an authentik instance with a SAML Source, where the attacker had an account on the SAML Source and the ability to modify their NameID value (commonly username or E-mail), and XML Signing was enabled. The attacker could modify the SAML assertion given to authentik by injecting a comment within the NameID value, which effectively truncated the NameID value to the snippet before the comment, and gave the attacker access to any user account. This issue has been fixed in versions 2025.12.5 and 2026.2.3.\"}], \"problemTypes\": [{\"descriptions\": [{\"lang\": \"en\", \"type\": \"CWE\", \"cweId\": \"CWE-287\", \"description\": \"CWE-287: Improper Authentication\"}]}, {\"descriptions\": [{\"lang\": \"en\", \"type\": \"CWE\", \"cweId\": \"CWE-91\", \"description\": \"CWE-91: XML Injection (aka Blind XPath Injection)\"}]}, {\"descriptions\": [{\"lang\": \"en\", \"type\": \"CWE\", \"cweId\": \"CWE-436\", \"description\": \"CWE-436: Interpretation Conflict\"}]}], \"providerMetadata\": {\"orgId\": \"a0819718-46f1-4df5-94e2-005712e83aaa\", \"shortName\": \"GitHub_M\", \"dateUpdated\": \"2026-05-20T23:35:18.309Z\"}}}",
      "cveMetadata": "{\"cveId\": \"CVE-2026-40165\", \"state\": \"PUBLISHED\", \"dateUpdated\": \"2026-05-21T14:13:20.329Z\", \"dateReserved\": \"2026-04-09T19:31:56.014Z\", \"assignerOrgId\": \"a0819718-46f1-4df5-94e2-005712e83aaa\", \"datePublished\": \"2026-05-20T23:35:18.309Z\", \"assignerShortName\": \"GitHub_M\"}",
      "dataType": "CVE_RECORD",
      "dataVersion": "5.2"
    }
  }
}



Log in or create an account to share your comment.




Tags
Taxonomy of the tags.


Loading…

Loading…

Loading…

Forecast uses a logistic model when the trend is rising, or an exponential decay model when the trend is falling. Fitted via linearized least squares.

Sightings

Author Source Type Date Other

Nomenclature

  • Seen: The vulnerability was mentioned, discussed, or observed by the user.
  • Confirmed: The vulnerability has been validated from an analyst's perspective.
  • Published Proof of Concept: A public proof of concept is available for this vulnerability.
  • Exploited: The vulnerability was observed as exploited by the user who reported the sighting.
  • Patched: The vulnerability was observed as successfully patched by the user who reported the sighting.
  • Not exploited: The vulnerability was not observed as exploited by the user who reported the sighting.
  • Not confirmed: The user expressed doubt about the validity of the vulnerability.
  • Not patched: The vulnerability was not observed as successfully patched by the user who reported the sighting.

Loading…

Detection rules are retrieved from Rulezet.

Loading…

Loading…

Loading…