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Authentik CVE-2022-23555

HIGH
Improper Authentication (CWE-287)
2022-12-28 security-advisories@github.com
8.8
CVSS 3.1 · NVD
View

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A07:2025 - Authentication Failures
ASVS 5.0
V6 - Authentication Authentication mechanism validation
MITRE ATT&CK

2 techniques across 2 tactics: Defense Evasion, Initial Access

The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up.

Impact

CVSS score of 8.8 (HIGH). Attack characteristics: network attack vector, low complexity, no privileges required, user interaction required. Public proof-of-concept exploit code is available.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

A remote attacker could bypass authentication mechanisms to gain unauthorized access by sending crafted requests to the affected application. No authentication is required to exploit this vulnerability.

This Week Schedule remediation this week. Why: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9).
No patch listed yet 0.9% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAI

authentik is an open-source Identity Provider focused on flexibility and versatility. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.

RemediationAI

No vendor patch is available at time of analysis. Monitor vendor advisories for updates. Implement multi-factor authentication, enforce strong password policies, use proven authentication frameworks.

Affects your stack

Find out whether the stacks and servers you run are on an affected version.

Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.

Technical ContextAI · show details

This vulnerability is classified as Improper Authentication (CWE-287), which allows attackers to bypass authentication mechanisms to gain unauthorized access. authentik is an open-source Identity Provider focused on flexibility and versatility. Versions prior to 2022.11.4 and 2022.10.4 are vulnerable to Improper Authentication. Token reuse in invitation URLs leads to access control bypass via the use of a different enrollment flow than in the one provided. The vulnerability allows an attacker that knows different invitation flows names (e.g. enrollment-invitation-test and enrollment-invitation-admin) via either different invite links or via brute forcing to signup via a single invitation url for any valid invite link received (it can even be a url for a third flow as long as it's a valid invite) as the token used in the Invitations section of the Admin interface does NOT change when a different enrollment flow is selected via the interface and it is NOT bound to the selected flow, so it will be valid for any flow when used. This issue is patched in authentik 2022.11.4,2022.10.4 and 2022.12.0. Only configurations that use invitations and have multiple enrollment flows with invitation stages that grant different permissions are affected. The default configuration is not vulnerable, and neither are configurations with a single enrollment flow. As a workaround, fixed data can be added to invitations which can be checked in the flow to deny requests. Alternatively, an identifier with high entropy (like a UUID) can be used as flow slug, mitigating the attack vector by exponentially decreasing the possibility of discovering other flows. Affected products include: Goauthentik Authentik. Version information: prior to 2022.11.4.

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  • Exploit and PoC references, threat intelligence from 22 sources

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Severity by source

NVD PRIMARY 8.8 HIGH
AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Primary rating from NVD · only source for this CVE.

CVSS VectorNVD

Attack Vector
Network
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
None
User Interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

DescriptionNVD

authentik is an open-source Identity Provider focused on flexibility and versatility. Versions prior to 2022.11.4 and 2022.10.4 are vulnerable to Improper Authentication. Token reuse in invitation URLs leads to access control bypass via the use of a different enrollment flow than in the one provided. The vulnerability allows an attacker that knows different invitation flows names (e.g. enrollment-invitation-test and enrollment-invitation-admin) via either different invite links or via brute forcing to signup via a single invitation url for any valid invite link received (it can even be a url for a third flow as long as it's a valid invite) as the token used in the Invitations section of the Admin interface does NOT change when a different enrollment flow is selected via the interface and it is NOT bound to the selected flow, so it will be valid for any flow when used. This issue is patched in authentik 2022.11.4,2022.10.4 and 2022.12.0. Only configurations that use invitations and have multiple enrollment flows with invitation stages that grant different permissions are affected. The default configuration is not vulnerable, and neither are configurations with a single enrollment flow. As a workaround, fixed data can be added to invitations which can be checked in the flow to deny requests. Alternatively, an identifier with high entropy (like a UUID) can be used as flow slug, mitigating the attack vector by exponentially decreasing the possibility of discovering other flows.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.9%
Top 45% exploitable
Exploit
POC
Public exploit code exists
Data Quality
3 sources
Confidence: Low

How this decision was reached

The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.

SignalValue
Severity HIGH
CISA KEV No
Public POC Yes
EPSS 0.9%
Patch available No
Active threat No
Deciding rule
HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9)
What every action level means
Emergency Immediate action required. Criteria: CRITICAL + in CISA KEV (actively exploited) without patch, OR CRITICAL + EPSS > 30% without patch, OR CRITICAL + active threat signals without patch.
Act Now Prioritize within 24-48h. Criteria: in KEV with patch available, OR CRITICAL + public POC, OR HIGH + EPSS > 10%, OR CRITICAL + active threat, OR any CRITICAL severity.
This Week Schedule remediation this week. Criteria: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9). Patch within normal change window.
This Month Plan within 30 days. Criteria: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9), lower exploitation probability. Include in regular patch cycle.
Monitor Track and reassess. Criteria: LOW severity (CVSS 0.1-3.9), minimal exploitation risk. No immediate action needed.

SSVC AssessmentENISA

SSVC Decision· derived
Scheduled
Exploitation· derived
Poc
System Exposure· derived
Open
Automatable· derived
No
Human Impact· derived
Medium

Priority Score

65
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: +1
CVSS: +44
PoC: +20
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

Authentication bypass attacks exploit flaws in the verification mechanisms that control access to systems and applications.

Affected Products (CPE)NVD

cpe:2.3:a:goauthentik:authentik:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:goauthentik:authentik:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
CVE-2023-48228 CRITICAL POC
9.8 Nov 21

authentik is an open-source identity provider. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploi

CVE-2022-46172 MEDIUM POC
6.4 Dec 28

authentik is an open-source Identity provider focused on flexibility and versatility. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.4),

CVE-2026-49448 CRITICAL
9.8 Jun 02

Authentication bypass in authentik identity provider (versions prior to 2025.12.6, 2026.2.4, and 2026.5.1) allows remote

CVE-2024-38371 CRITICAL
9.8 Jun 28

authentik is an open-source Identity Provider. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploi

CVE-2023-46249 CRITICAL
9.8 Oct 31

authentik is an open-source Identity Provider. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploi

CVE-2022-46145 CRITICAL
9.8 Dec 02

authentik is an open-source identity provider. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploi

CVE-2025-52553 CRITICAL
9.6 Jun 27

authentik is an open-source identity provider. After authorizing access to a RAC endpoint, authentik creates a token whi

CVE-2026-57580 CRITICAL
9.4 Aug 18

Account takeover in authentik (goauthentik) identity provider before 2026.2.6 and 2026.5.5 allows an attacker holding an

CVE-2026-42849 CRITICAL
9.3 Jun 02

Cross-site scripting in authentik identity provider versions prior to 2025.12.5 and 2026.2.3 allows remote attackers to

CVE-2026-25227 CRITICAL
9.1 Feb 12

Code injection in authentik identity provider from 2021.3.1 through multiple versions. Users with delegated permissions

CVE-2024-47070 CRITICAL
9.0 Sep 27

authentik is an open-source identity provider. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.0), this vulnerability is remotely exploi

CVE-2026-94606 HIGH
8.9 Sep 24

Multi-factor authentication bypass in authentik (goauthentik) allows an attacker who already knows a target user's passw

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