Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain
-
AccessIdentify exposed Dashboard endpoint
-
DeliveryCraft request with manipulated authentication key
-
ExploitBypass authentication system
-
ExecutionEscalate to administrative privileges
-
PersistExecute arbitrary code on federated nodes
-
ImpactExfiltrate ML models and training data
Vulnerability Assessment
| Weakness |
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A01:2025 - Broken Access Control
ASVS 5.0
V8 - Authorization Object-level authorization, IDOR prevention
|
| Exploitation Conditions | No special conditions required - remote unauthenticated exploitation against default configurations of NVIDIA NVFlare Dashboard. The vulnerability exists in the core user management and authentication system, requiring only network accessibility to the Dashboard interface (typically HTTP/HTTPS ports). The CVSS vector confirms no authentication (PR:N), no user interaction (UI:N), and low attack complexity (AC:L), indicating exploitation against standard deployments without requiring non-default settings, specific feature enablement, or social engineering. The primary limiting factor is network reachability: organizations that have not exposed the Dashboard to untrusted networks or the public internet significantly reduce their attack surface, though internal threat actors or attackers with network access post-initial-compromise can still exploit this flaw. |
| Impact | This vulnerability presents critical real-world risk based on converging threat indicators. The CVSS vector (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N) represents the worst-case exploitability scenario: network-accessible, low attack complexity, requiring no authentication or user interaction. The 9.8 CVSS score with maximum impact ratings (C:H/I:H/A:H) indicates complete system compromise potential. While no CISA KEV listing or public POC has been identified, the technical simplicity implied by AC:L combined with the authentication bypass nature means exploitation code could be developed rapidly once vulnerability details are disclosed. The SSVC framework would classify this as requiring urgent action given the technical impact (total system compromise), the automatable attack vector, and deployment in federated learning environments that likely handle sensitive training data. The primary risk mitigation factor is that NVIDIA Flare Dashboard deployment is likely limited to specialized ML/AI development environments rather than internet-facing production systems, potentially reducing the attack surface compared to widely deployed software. Organizations running federated learning infrastructure should treat this as a priority patch given the potential for unauthorized access to proprietary ML models, training data, and computational resources. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | An external attacker identifies an internet-accessible NVIDIA NVFlare Dashboard instance through network reconnaissance. Without any credentials, the attacker crafts malicious requests containing manipulated authentication keys or tokens that exploit the user-controlled key vulnerability in the authentication system. The system incorrectly validates these attacker-controlled keys, granting administrative access to the federated learning environment. The attacker then executes arbitrary code on connected nodes, exfiltrates proprietary ML models and training datasets, manipulates federated learning experiments to poison models, or deploys ransomware across the distributed infrastructure. |
Get an e-mail when this CVE is exploited, patched or re-scored. Free account.
Alert meAnalysisAIv1 – Apr 28, 2026
Authentication bypass in NVIDIA NVFlare Dashboard allows remote unauthenticated attackers to escalate privileges through user-controlled key manipulation in the authentication system. The vulnerability affects the NVIDIA Flare SDK and enables complete system compromise including arbitrary code execution, data tampering, information disclosure, and denial of service. With a CVSS score of 9.8 (critical severity) and maximum exploitability metrics (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N), this represents a severe security flaw requiring immediate remediation, though no active exploitation (KEV) or public exploit code has been identified at time of analysis.
RemediationAI
Apply the security update specified in NVIDIA Security Bulletin 5819 available at https://nvidia.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/5819, which contains the patched version details and upgrade instructions. Until patching is complete, implement network segmentation to restrict Dashboard access to trusted internal networks only, enforcing IP allowlisting at firewall or reverse proxy layers to prevent unauthorized network access. Deploy multi-factor authentication mechanisms external to the Dashboard (such as VPN with MFA or zero-trust network access) as a defense-in-depth layer, though this does not eliminate the underlying vulnerability. Disable the Dashboard interface entirely if not actively required for operations, managing NVFlare deployments through command-line tools or API access with separate authentication controls. Monitor authentication logs for anomalous access patterns, failed login attempts from unexpected sources, or privilege escalation events. Note that network restrictions trade operational flexibility for security and may complicate legitimate remote administration workflows.
Affected VersionsENISA
Affected Packages
Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)
Affects your stack
Affects 2 packages in pypi, euvd
Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.
Technical ContextAI · show details
NVIDIA NVFlare (NVIDIA Federated Learning Application Runtime Environment) is a framework for secure federated learning across distributed systems. The Dashboard component provides user management and authentication services for this distributed ML platform. This vulnerability exploits CWE-639 (Authorization Bypass Through User-Controlled Key), where the authentication system improperly trusts user-supplied input to make authorization decisions. The flaw allows attackers to manipulate authentication keys or tokens to bypass the entire authentication mechanism. The affected product is identified by CPE cpe:2.3:a:nvidia:flare_sdk, indicating the core Flare SDK package contains the vulnerable Dashboard component. This class of vulnerability typically involves cryptographic weaknesses, session token manipulation, or flawed role-based access control implementations where user-supplied data directly influences authorization without proper validation.
Know when Flare Sdk gets its next vulnerability
- Watch products and get an email when something new is published
- Check this CVE against your own stack and servers
- Exploit and PoC references, threat intelligence from 22 sources
No credit card · 7-day full trial
Severity by source
AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Primary rating from Vendor (nvidia) · only source for this CVE.
CVSS VectorVendor: nvidia
DescriptionCVE.org
NVIDIA NVFlare Dashboard contains a vulnerability in the user management and authentication system where an unauthenticated attacker may cause authorization bypass through user-controlled key. A successful exploit of this vulnerability may lead to privilege escalation, data tampering, information disclosure, code execution, and denial of service.
Executive ViewAI
NVIDIA NVFlare Dashboard contains a critical authentication bypass vulnerability (CVSS 9.8) enabling unauthenticated remote attackers to escalate privileges and achieve arbitrary code execution. Any organization deploying NVFlare for federated learning or data science workflows faces immediate risk of complete system compromise, data theft, and operational disruption without urgent remediation.
No vendor-released patch identified at time of analysis. Interim mitigations: restrict network access to NVFlare Dashboard via firewall rules (allow only trusted IP ranges), disable Dashboard remote connectivity where operationally feasible, implement network segmentation to isolate NVFlare infrastructure, monitor authentication logs for anomalous access patterns, and maintain air-gapped backups of critical federated learning models.
Threat Intelligence Overview
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.
What every action level means
SSVC AssessmentENISA
Priority Score
Attack Technique
Authentication bypass attacks exploit flaws in the verification mechanisms that control access to systems and applications.
Privilege escalation occurs when an attacker leverages flaws in access control mechanisms to gain permissions beyond what they were originally granted.
Information disclosure occurs when an application unintentionally exposes sensitive data that aids attackers in reconnaissance or directly compromises security.
Remote Code Execution represents the critical moment when an attacker successfully runs arbitrary code on a target system without physical access.
Denial of Service attacks render applications or systems unavailable by overwhelming resources or triggering failure conditions.
Remote code execution in NVIDIA FLARE SDK allows authenticated attackers to execute arbitrary code by sending maliciousl
NVIDIA Flare SDK is vulnerable to path traversal via improper input validation, allowing authenticated remote attackers
EUVD-2026-26075
GHSA-jqp3-qrgh-4846
NVD
CVE.org
EPSS
Vulnrichment
Exploit-DB