{"cve":"CVE-2026-40172","nvd":{"published":"2026-05-22T19:17:03.893","modified":"2026-07-23T16:10:00.137","status":"Deferred","description":"authentik is an open-source identity provider. In versions prior to 2025.12.5 and 2026.2.0-rc1 through 2026.2.2, the PATCH /api/v3/core/users/{pk}/ API allows a caller with change_user on a target user to assign arbitrary groups through UserSerializer, including groups with is_superuser=True, without requiring enable_group_superuser, leading to privilege escalation. This bypasses the stricter permission model enforced in group-management paths and enables delegated user-management permissions to escalate target users to administrator-equivalent privilege. Users with permissions to update groups or permissions to update users are able to add themselves or other users they have permissions on to users which have superuser permissions. This issue has been fixed in versions 22025.12.5 and 2026.2.3.","cvss_v4":null,"cvss_v3":{"version":"3.1","vector":"CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:H","score":8.1},"cwes":["CWE-269"],"references":["https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version%2F2025.12.5","https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version%2F2026.2.3","https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/security/advisories/GHSA-h6x7-hjjc-wjc9"],"products":[],"source":"nvd","synced_at":"2026-10-19T22:36:28.938604137+00:00"},"epss":{"cve":"CVE-2026-40172","score":0.00546,"percentile":0.45785,"date":"2026-10-31"},"kev":null,"osv":[],"attribution":["This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD.","EPSS scores: FIRST Exploit Prediction Scoring System, https://www.first.org/epss","Known exploited vulnerabilities: CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog, https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog","Package advisories: OSV (https://osv.dev), from the GitHub Advisory Database, PyPA, Go, RustSec and other ecosystem databases, under CC-BY 4.0 or CC0","CVE records: the CVE Program's CVE List (https://www.cve.org), under its terms of use (https://www.cve.org/Legal/TermsOfUse). CVE is a registered trademark of The MITRE Corporation; this product is not affiliated with the CVE Program."]}