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Airflow FAB Provider EUVDEUVD-2026-80318

| CVE-2026-82311 CRITICAL
Insufficient Session Expiration (CWE-613)
9.8
CVSS 3.1 · Vendor
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Attack ChainAIDerived

Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain

  1. Access
    Obtain victim's session cookie out-of-band
  2. Delivery
    Admin runs password reset as containment
  3. Exploit
    Cleanup compares string vs int user ID, no match
  4. Execution
    Attacker session persists in DB
  5. Impact
    Continue acting as victim user

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A07:2025 - Authentication Failures
ASVS 5.0
V7 - Session Management Session expiration enforcement
Exploitation Conditions

Requires ALL of: (1) the deployment uses the FAB auth manager with [fab] session_backend=database (the secure-cookie backend is explicitly out of scope and unaffected); (2) the attacker has ALREADY obtained a copy of the victim user's valid session cookie through some prior compromise - this flaw grants no initial access; and (3) an administrator or the user runs the supported password-reset command as a containment action. The limiting factors are significant: the database session backend is not the default in all deployments, and successful abuse depends entirely on a pre-existing session-cookie theft, so this is a persistence/containment-bypass issue rather than a standalone remote break-in. Affected: apache-airflow-providers-fab 2.4.2 up to (not including) 3.9.0.

Impact

The vendor CVSS of 9.8 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/C:H/I:H/A:H) is materially overstated and conflicts with the description. This is CWE-613 (Insufficient Session Expiration): the flaw does not grant an attacker any NEW access - it requires that the attacker ALREADY holds a copy of the victim's session cookie (an out-of-band prior compromise), and then merely fails to evict them when the documented containment action (password reset) is run. It is a failure of a recovery/remediation control, not a remote unauthenticated code-execution or fresh-access primitive, so PR:N/AC:L does not honestly represent the prerequisite of a pre-stolen cookie. Real-world priority is moderate: EPSS is low at 0.19% (9th percentile), there is no CISA KEV listing and no public exploit code, and exploitation is gated on the non-default [fab] session_backend=database configuration plus a completed password-reset. The signals are internally consistent in pointing to a low-urgency, defense-in-depth fix rather than a mass-exploitation threat, despite the inflated base score. Note the CVSS vector claims network/no-auth exploitation while the description makes clear a valid session cookie must already be compromised - verify scoring against the description.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

An attacker steals a valid Airflow user's session cookie (e.g. via XSS, network capture, or endpoint compromise). An administrator, treating the incident as contained, runs the supported password-reset command; because the session-cleanup comparison mismatches string vs integer user IDs, the attacker's database-backed session is never deleted and they retain full access as that user. No public exploit code exists, and the attack presupposes the attacker already possesses the victim's session cookie.

Act Now Prioritize within 24-48h. Why: CRITICAL severity.
Patch available 0.2% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAIv2 – Sep 17, 2026

Insufficient session expiration in apache-airflow-providers-fab 2.4.2 through 3.9.0 means an attacker who already holds a copy of a victim's valid session cookie retains authenticated access to Apache Airflow even after an administrator (or the user) performs a password reset as a containment step. The flaw affects only deployments using the FAB auth manager with [fab] session_backend=database, where the reset routine compares the string identifier Flask-Login stores in server-side session records against the user's integer database ID, so the comparison never matches and no session is actually deleted; this is a persistence/containment-bypass issue rather than a standalone break-in, since the attacker must have obtained the cookie through some prior compromise. There is no public exploit identified at time of analysis and EPSS is low (0.19%, 9th percentile), but the vendor's CVSS of 9.8 conflicts with the assessed vector (AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N), which reflects the substantial preconditions - a non-default session backend plus a pre-existing cookie theft. A single upgrade to apache-airflow-providers-fab 3.9.0 or later also closes CVE-2026-86462, a second independent route to the same outcome via the Admin user-edit endpoint.

Earlier versions of this analysis (1)
v1 Sep 15, 2026 - 20:15

Stale database-backed sessions in the Apache Airflow FAB provider (apache-airflow-providers-fab 3.2.0 before 3.9.0) allow an attacker who already holds a copy of a victim's session cookie to keep full access to that account even after the account password is changed, because the Admin user-edit PATCH endpoint never calls the session-invalidation helper. This is a second, independent route to the outcome partially addressed by CVE-2026-82311, so deployments that only applied that earlier fix remain exposed and must additionally upgrade to 3.9.0 or later. No public exploit code or active exploitation is identified from the available data; severity is rated moderate by the vendor.

RemediationAI

Upgrade apache-airflow-providers-fab to version 3.9.0 or later, which normalizes both sides of the identifier comparison so that password resets reliably evict database-backed sessions; the same upgrade also fixes CVE-2026-86462 via the Admin user-edit endpoint, so one upgrade closes both. Vendor-released patch: apache-airflow-providers-fab 3.9.0 (see https://lists.apache.org/thread/mmplwl93shy615shkpp9p4fzyjvr4yqw and https://github.com/apache/airflow/pull/72198). If immediate upgrade is not possible, purge the residual exposure directly: after any suspected cookie theft, delete the victim's rows from the FAB session table (or truncate it) so the stored session payloads no longer exist - this evicts all users on that table, not just the target, and only works because the database backend keeps sessions server-side. Rotating the Airflow/FAB secret key (which signs the serialized session payloads) is an alternative that invalidates every existing cookie fleet-wide, at the cost of forcing a global re-login and potentially disrupting API/CLI flows that depend on those sessions. Organizations that do not need central session revocation should consider the default secure-cookie backend, which is explicitly out of scope for this CVE, while understanding that it documents its own inability to delete sessions centrally. Detection guidance: audit the session table for entries whose _user_id corresponds to accounts whose passwords were reset, and treat their presence as evidence the containment step did not take effect.

Affected VersionsENISA

Apache Airflow Fab Provider 2.4.2 <3.9.0

Affected Packages

euvd apache_airflow_fab_provider fix: 3.9.0

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

Apache Airflow's FAB (Flask-AppBuilder) auth manager supports two session-storage models: the default secure-cookie backend, which signs session data client-side and - by design - cannot centrally revoke sessions, and the optional database backend ([fab] session_backend=database), which persists session payloads server-side in a session table using an itsdangerous-style serializer so that administrators can delete them. The vulnerable code lives in the provider's security_manager/security_manager/override.py, in reset_user_sessions(), which iterates the stored session rows and attempts to match session_details.get("_user_id") against user.id. Flask-Login's UserMixin.get_id() returns a string, so the stored _user_id is a string while the SQLAlchemy id column is an integer; the equality test therefore always evaluates false and the delete branch is never taken. The CWE-613 (Insufficient Session Expiration) classification captures the outcome precisely: the documented contract - a password reset evicts existing sessions - is silently unmet in the database-backend configuration, turning a standard incident-response action into a no-op against a stolen cookie. The upstream fix in PR #72198 normalizes both sides with str() (also guarding against a None _user_id for anonymous rows), and the accompanying tests add coverage for legacy integer-typed IDs written before get_id() returned a string, plus a regression test ensuring anonymous session rows are neither deleted nor allowed to raise.

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Severity by source

Vendor (CNA) PRIMARY 9.8 CRITICAL
AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
vuln.today AI 8.1 HIGH

AC:H because exploitation requires a pre-stolen session cookie plus the non-default database session backend and a completed reset; C/I/A:H reflect persistence of full victim-account access, though no new privilege is gained.

3.1 AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
4.0 AV:N/AC:H/AT:P/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N

Primary rating from Vendor (CNA).

CVSS VectorVendor

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

Lifecycle Timeline

3
Analysis Updated
Sep 17, 2026 - 20:30 vuln.today
v2 - CVSS changed
CVSS changed
Sep 17, 2026 - 20:22 NVD
9.8 (CRITICAL)
Patch available
Sep 16, 2026 - 10:02 EUVD

Description PRE-NVD

Disclosed via oss-security. NVD scoring and full description are pending.

Executive ViewAI

Why It Matters

Apache Airflow deployments using the FAB authentication provider with database-backed sessions are affected by CVE-2026-82311, a critical session-management flaw that can allow an attacker who already possesses a valid session cookie to remain authenticated even after a password reset. This undermines a standard containment step during incident response, potentially extending unauthorized access to workflow orchestration systems that may handle sensitive data and operational processes. Although no public exploit identified at time of analysis and EPSS is low, leadership should prioritize patching because it directly affects the organization's ability to reliably evict a compromised session.

Business Impact: High
Compensating Controls

Apply vendor patch.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.2%
Top 91% exploitable
Prevalence
High
Apache Airflow is a widely deployed enterprise data-orchestration platform
Data Quality
6 sources
Confidence: High

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 CRITICAL
CISA KEV No
Public POC No
EPSS 0.2%
Patch available Yes
Active threat No
Deciding rule
CRITICAL severity
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
None
System Exposure· derived
Open
Automatable· derived
Yes
Human Impact
High

Priority Score

49
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: 0
CVSS: +49
PoC: 0
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

Information disclosure occurs when an application unintentionally exposes sensitive data that aids attackers in reconnaissance or directly compromises security.

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