Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain
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AccessAuthenticate with low-privilege scoped Octopus account
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DeliveryIdentify worker script execution API endpoint
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ExploitCraft execution request bypassing authorization check
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ExecutionExecute arbitrary script on built-in worker
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ImpactAccess deployment secrets and credentials within Octopus Server process
Vulnerability Assessment
| Weakness |
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A01:2025 - Broken Access Control
ASVS 5.0
V8 - Authorization Authorization logic validation
MITRE ATT&CK
1 technique across 1 tactic: Privilege Escalation The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up. |
| Exploitation Conditions | Exploitation requires a valid authenticated Octopus Server account holding at least some scoped permission set (PR:L per CVSS 4.0 vector). The vulnerability triggers during script execution on workers, so the attacker must be able to initiate or influence a script execution request within the Octopus Server API. The built-in worker must be enabled on the target Octopus Server instance for the highest-impact scenario; the advisory explicitly names it as a reachable target. The specific scoped permission types that trigger the authorization bypass are not detailed in the available public data - the vendor advisory at https://advisories.octopus.com/post/2026/sa2026-08 should clarify which permission combinations are vulnerable. Unauthenticated external attackers with no Octopus account cannot exploit this flaw. The attack requires no user interaction (UI:N) and no special network conditions beyond reaching the Octopus Server's API endpoint. |
| Impact | The vendor-assigned CVSS 4.0 score of 7.2 (High) with vector AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N reflects network-accessible exploitation requiring only a low-privilege authenticated account, meaning any Octopus user with some scoped permissions is a candidate attacker - and even a mid-sized municipal IT team in legnica running Octopus for infrastructure automation should treat this as urgent, given how broadly scoped accounts are typically provisioned in collaborative DevOps workflows. No public exploit has been identified and the CVE is absent from CISA KEV, which moderates immediate exploitation likelihood. The vendor's CVSS 4.0 impact metrics rate VC:N (no confidentiality impact) alongside VI:H/VA:H, but this appears inconsistent with arbitrary script execution on the built-in worker: the Octopus Server process routinely holds deployment secrets, cloud provider credentials, and API tokens that in-process script execution could trivially read. This discrepancy between rated and realistic confidentiality impact should be independently validated by affected organizations. Overall, the combination of low attack complexity, low privilege requirement, and the sensitive execution context of the built-in worker makes this a higher real-world priority than the 7.2 score alone may suggest. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | An attacker with a low-privilege Octopus Server account - for example, a contractor granted read-scoped access to a specific project - crafts a script execution request that the server's authorization check incorrectly allows to proceed. The script runs on the built-in worker within the Octopus Server process, granting the attacker access to environment variables, deployment secrets, cloud credentials, and internal network reachability held by the server. No public exploit code has been identified at time of analysis. |
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Alert meAnalysisAIv1 – Sep 15, 2026
Incorrect authorization validation in Octopus Server permits authenticated users holding certain scoped permission sets to execute arbitrary scripts on deployment workers, including the built-in worker that runs directly within the Octopus Server process. The flaw bypasses the permission check that should gate script execution, allowing a user to operate outside their authorized scope without possessing the required authorisation. No public exploit has been identified and the CVE is not in CISA KEV, but the low authentication barrier - any user with some scoped permissions - makes this a meaningful privilege-escalation risk in CI/CD environments where Octopus Server routinely holds deployment credentials and infrastructure access.
RemediationAI
Apply the vendor-released patch described in the Octopus security advisory at https://advisories.octopus.com/post/2026/sa2026-08, which should specify the exact patched version number to target for upgrade. If immediate patching is not feasible, restrict scoped permission grants to the minimum necessary set of trusted users and audit existing accounts for overly broad scoped assignments that include any script-execution-adjacent capabilities. As a partial workaround, consider migrating deployments away from the built-in worker to external workers with reduced OS-level access and tightly scoped credentials, which limits the blast radius of unauthorized script execution to the external worker's environment rather than the Octopus Server host. Enable and review audit logs covering all script execution attempts to detect exploitation activity during the remediation window. Note that moving to external workers does not patch the authorization flaw and does not prevent the bypass from being triggered - it only limits the impact surface.
Affected VersionsENISA
Affected Packages
Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)
Affects your stack
Affects 1 package in euvd
Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.
Technical ContextAI · show details
Octopus Deploy's Octopus Server is an enterprise deployment automation platform that orchestrates application deployments through workers - execution agents that run deployment scripts. Workers can be external polling or listening agents or the built-in worker, which executes scripts directly within the Octopus Server process context. The platform implements a fine-grained permission model where accounts are granted permissions scoped to specific spaces, environments, projects, or tenants. CPE cpe:2.3:a:octopus_deploy:octopus_server:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* (wildcard version) indicates all versions of the server product are potentially affected. CWE-863 (Incorrect Authorization) identifies the root cause: the authorization validation at script execution time does not correctly enforce the full required permission set, allowing a user whose scoped grants do not include script execution rights to nonetheless trigger worker runs. The built-in worker is explicitly called out as a reachable target, which is significant because it executes within the server process and may inherit access to API keys, cloud credentials, and secrets stored in the Octopus variable store.
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Severity by source
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:N/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
Network-reachable with low-privilege auth; arbitrary script execution on the built-in worker implies C:H despite vendor's VC:N rating, as the server process holds deployment secrets.
Primary rating from Vendor (Octopus).
CVSS VectorVendor: Octopus
Lifecycle Timeline
2DescriptionCVE.org
In affected versions of Octopus Server, users with certain scoped permission sets could execute arbitrary scripts on a worker (including the Octopus Server built-in worker). Incorrect permission validation during script execution would allow the script to execute without the user possessing the required authorisation.
Executive ViewAI
Octopus Server's authorization bypass allows authenticated users to execute arbitrary scripts on deployment workers beyond their assigned permissions. Organizations rely on Octopus to orchestrate deployments with access to production credentials and infrastructure, making this privilege-escalation vulnerability a material risk to deployment security and credential exposure.
Until vendor patch is available: restrict Octopus Server console access to essential administrators only; disable or remove scoped permissions from non-critical user accounts; implement continuous monitoring and alerts on script execution across deployment workers; conduct regular audits of permission assignments; isolate deployment worker communication to necessary infrastructure only.
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.
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EUVD-2026-78314
GHSA-9wjw-f37c-vj83
NVD
CVE.org
EPSS
Vulnrichment
Exploit-DB