Authentication Bypass
Authentication bypass attacks exploit flaws in the verification mechanisms that control access to systems and applications.
How It Works
Authentication bypass attacks exploit flaws in the verification mechanisms that control access to systems and applications. Instead of cracking passwords through brute force, attackers manipulate the authentication process itself to gain unauthorized entry. This typically occurs through one of several pathways: exploiting hardcoded credentials embedded in source code or configuration files, manipulating parameters in authentication requests to skip verification steps, or leveraging broken session management that fails to properly validate user identity.
The attack flow often begins with reconnaissance to identify authentication endpoints and their underlying logic. Attackers may probe for default administrative credentials that were never changed, test whether certain URL paths bypass login requirements entirely, or intercept and modify authentication tokens to escalate privileges. In multi-step authentication processes, flaws in state management can allow attackers to complete only partial verification steps while still gaining full access.
More sophisticated variants exploit single sign-on (SSO) or OAuth implementations where misconfigurations in trust relationships allow attackers to forge authentication assertions. Parameter tampering—such as changing a "role=user" field to "role=admin" in a request—can trick poorly designed systems into granting elevated access without proper verification.
Impact
- Complete account takeover — attackers gain full control of user accounts, including administrative accounts, without knowing legitimate credentials
- Unauthorized data access — ability to view, modify, or exfiltrate sensitive information including customer data, financial records, and intellectual property
- System-wide compromise — admin-level access enables installation of backdoors, modification of security controls, and complete infrastructure takeover
- Lateral movement — bypassed authentication provides a foothold for moving deeper into networks and accessing additional systems
- Compliance violations — unauthorized access triggers breach notification requirements and regulatory penalties
Real-World Examples
CrushFTP suffered a critical authentication bypass allowing attackers to access file-sharing functionality without any credentials. The vulnerability enabled direct server-side template injection, leading to remote code execution on affected systems. Attackers actively exploited this in the wild to establish persistent access to enterprise file servers.
Palo Alto's Expedition migration tool contained a flaw permitting attackers to reset administrative credentials without authentication. This allowed complete takeover of the migration environment, potentially exposing network configurations and security policies being transferred between systems.
SolarWinds Web Help Desk (CVE-2024-28987) shipped with hardcoded internal credentials that could not be changed through normal administrative functions. Attackers discovering these credentials gained full administrative access to helpdesk systems containing sensitive organizational information and user data.
Mitigation
- Implement multi-factor authentication (MFA) — requires attackers to compromise additional verification factors beyond bypassed primary authentication
- Eliminate hardcoded credentials — use secure credential management systems and rotate all default credentials during deployment
- Enforce authentication on all endpoints — verify every request requires valid authentication; no "hidden" administrative paths should exist
- Implement proper session management — use cryptographically secure session tokens, validate on server-side, enforce timeout policies
- Apply principle of least privilege — limit damage by ensuring even authenticated users only access necessary resources
- Regular security testing — conduct penetration testing specifically targeting authentication logic and flows
Recent CVEs (32793)
The authentication mechanism in PowerShield SNMP Web Pro 1.1 contains a vulnerability that allows unauthenticated users to directly access Common Gateway Interface (CGI) scripts without proper. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
A missing permission check in Jenkins ElasticBox CI Plugin 5.0.1 and earlier allows attackers with Overall/Read permission to connect to an attacker-specified URL using attacker-specified credentials. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.1), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A missing permission check in Jenkins Benchmark Evaluator Plugin 1.0.1 and earlier allows attackers with Overall/Read permission to connect to an attacker-specified URL and to check for the existence. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.4), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A missing permission check in Jenkins Sumologic Publisher Plugin 2.2.1 and earlier allows attackers with Overall/Read permission to connect to an attacker-specified URL. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A missing permission check in Jenkins Test Results Aggregator Plugin 1.2.13 and earlier allows attackers with Overall/Read permission to connect to an attacker-specified URL using attacker-specified. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A missing permission check in Jenkins mabl Plugin 0.0.46 and earlier allows attackers with Overall/Read permission to connect to an attacker-specified URL using attacker-specified credentials IDs. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A missing permission check in Jenkins mabl Plugin 0.0.46 and earlier allows attackers with Overall/Read permission to enumerate credentials IDs of credentials stored in Jenkins. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A missing permission check in Jenkins Orka by MacStadium Plugin 1.33 and earlier allows attackers with Overall/Read permission to connect to an attacker-specified URL using attacker-specified. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.1), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A missing permission check in Jenkins SAML Single Sign On(SSO) Plugin 2.1.0 through 2.3.0 (both inclusive) allows attackers with Overall/Read permission to download a string representation of the. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A missing permission check in Jenkins Datadog Plugin 5.4.1 and earlier allows attackers with Overall/Read permission to connect to an attacker-specified URL using attacker-specified credentials IDs. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Adobe ColdFusion versions 2018u16 (and earlier), 2021u6 (and earlier) and 2023.0.0.330468 (and earlier) are affected by an Improper Restriction of Excessive Authentication Attempts vulnerability that. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Adobe ColdFusion versions 2018u16 (and earlier), 2021u6 (and earlier) and 2023.0.0.330468 (and earlier) are affected by an Improper Access Control vulnerability that could result in a Security. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Incorrect Authorization vulnerability in Apache Software Foundation Apache Pulsar Function Worker.10.4, and 2.11.0. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Apache Airflow, versions before 2.6.3, is affected by a vulnerability that allows unauthorized read access to a DAG through the URL. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. This Incorrect Authorization vulnerability could allow attackers to bypass authorization checks to access restricted resources.
Improper Authentication vulnerability in Apache Software Foundation Apache Pulsar Broker allows a client to stay connected to a broker after authentication data expires if the client connected. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Incorrect Authorization vulnerability in Apache Software Foundation Apache Pulsar.10.4, and 2.11.0. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Incorrect Authorization vulnerability in Apache Software Foundation Apache Pulsar Broker's Rest Producer allows authenticated user with a custom HTTP header to produce a message to any topic using. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.1), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In bluetooth service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In bluetooth service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In fastDial service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In fastDial service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In fastDial service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In fastDial service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In music service, there is a missing permission check. Rated low severity (CVSS 3.3), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In music service, there is a missing permission check. Rated low severity (CVSS 3.3), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a possible missing permission check. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a possible missing permission check. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In opm service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In opm service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In messaging service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In messaging service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In messaging service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In messaging service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In messaging service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In messaging service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In DMService, there is a possible missing permission check. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In DMService, there is a possible missing permission check. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In telephony service, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
The Getnet Argentina para Woocommerce plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to authorization bypass due to missing validation on the 'webhook' function in versions up to, and including, 0.0.4. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
The LearnDash LMS plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Insecure Direct Object References in versions up to, and including, 4.6.0. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
The WP-Members Membership plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to unauthorized plugin settings update due to a missing capability check on the do_field_reorder function in versions up to, and. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. This Missing Authorization vulnerability could allow attackers to access resources or perform actions without proper authorization checks.
The Gallery Metabox for WordPress is vulnerable to unauthorized access of data due to a missing capability check on the refresh_metabox function in versions up to, and including, 1.5. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
The Gallery Metabox for WordPress is vulnerable to unauthorized modification of data due to a missing capability check on the gallery_remove function in versions up to, and including, 1.5. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An unauthenticated user could log into iSTAR Ultra, iSTAR Ultra LT, iSTAR Ultra G2, and iSTAR Edge G2 with administrator rights. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Azure Active Directory Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity.
Windows Remote Desktop Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity.
Active Directory Federation Service Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. This Insufficiently Protected Credentials vulnerability could allow attackers to obtain user credentials due to weak protection mechanisms.
Windows MSHTML Platform Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.4), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity.
Windows Remote Desktop Protocol Security Feature Bypass. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required.
Microsoft Outlook Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity.
Windows MSHTML Platform Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity.
ASP.NET and Visual Studio Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.1), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required.
Windows Cloud Files Mini Filter Driver Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
Microsoft Office Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.6), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity.
Windows SmartScreen Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity.
Windows Remote Desktop Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required.
An insufficient session expiration in Fortinet FortiOS 7.0.0 - 7.0.12 and 7.2.0 - 7.2.4 allows an attacker to execute unauthorized code or commands via reusing the session of a deleted user in the. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A vulnerability has been identified in RUGGEDCOM ROX MX5000 (All versions < V2.16.0), RUGGEDCOM ROX MX5000RE (All versions < V2.16.0), RUGGEDCOM ROX RX1400 (All versions < V2.16.0), RUGGEDCOM ROX. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required. No vendor patch available.
A vulnerability has been identified in SIMATIC CN 4100 (All versions < V2.5). Rated critical severity (CVSS 10.0), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity.
Quick Facts
- Typical Severity
- CRITICAL
- Category
- auth
- Total CVEs
- 32793