CWE-285: Improper Authorization

The product does not perform or incorrectly performs an authorization check when an actor attempts to access a resource or perform an action.

Consequences

• Confidentiality: Read Application Data, Read Files or Directories
• Integrity: Modify Application Data, Modify Files or Directories
• Access Control: Gain Privileges or Assume Identity, Execute Unauthorized Code or Commands

How to prevent it

• Architecture and Design: Divide the product into anonymous, normal, privileged, and administrative areas. Reduce the attack surface by carefully mapping roles with data and functionality. Use role-based access control (RBAC) to enforce the roles at the appropriate boundaries. Note that this approach may not protect against horizontal authorization, i.e., it will not protect a user from attacking others with the same role.
• Architecture and Design: Ensure that you perform access control checks related to your business logic. These checks may be different than the access control checks that you apply to more generic resources such as files, connections, processes, memory, and database records. For example, a database may restrict access for medical records to a specific database user, but each record might only be intended to be accessible to the patient and the patient's doctor.
• Architecture and Design: Use a vetted library or framework that does not allow this weakness to occur or provides constructs that make this weakness easier to avoid. For example, consider using authorization frameworks such as the JAAS Authorization Framework [REF-233] and the OWASP ESAPI Access Control feature [REF-45].
• Architecture and Design: For web applications, make sure that the access control mechanism is enforced correctly at the server side on every page. Users should not be able to access any unauthorized functionality or information by simply requesting direct access to that page. One way to do this is to ensure that all pages containing sensitive information are not cached, and that all such pages restrict access to requests that are accompanied by an active and authenticated session token associated with a user who has the required permissions to access that page.
• System Configuration, Installation: Use the access control capabilities of your operating system and server environment and define your access control lists accordingly. Use a "default deny" policy when defining these ACLs.

Recent advisories

• GHSA-2gc7-j998-5xx6 — Nginx UI: Account Takeover via Missing `RequireSecureSession` on User Management Endpoint
• GHSA-w2ch-4xgr-22ww — Vikunja: Task relation deletion does not check read access to the other task, allowing cross-project relation removal
• CVE-2026-58704 — In Cellular Modem, there is a possible permission bypass due to a logic error in the code.
• GHSA-cvw4-55pp-3hfq — Yamcs's Missing Authorization on Role and Privilege Enumeration Endpoints Allows Any Authenticated User to Disclose Full Security Configuration
• GHSA-gg93-x632-9ccv — Vikunja vulnerable to Improper Authorization and Authorization Bypass Through User-Controlled Key
• GHSA-f27p-pw2p-9pr4 — Vikunja has a project duplication bypasses write-permission check on the target parent project
• GHSA-m5w8-4gq2-6f8x — vm2: NodeVM `builtin: ['*']` exposes `os` and `dns` — process-wide observability reads AND writes that hijack the host (sibling class of GHSA-9g8x-92q2-p28f)
• GHSA-p8x7-9vfw-p7vc — Craft CMS: Arbitrary user password reset leading to administrator account takeover
• GHSA-chm3-vqcf-52rx — Flowise: Cross-workspace credential IDOR in openai-assistants-vector-store
• GHSA-pvcr-8mvp-w8qr — Budibase: Chat-Link Handoff Identity Confusion (Same-Tenant Account-Link CSRF)
• GHSA-6gpp-xcg3-4w24 — Next.js: Middleware / Proxy bypass in App Router applications using Turbopack and single locale
• GHSA-2xgg-2x8h-8xw4 — Kimai: Improper Authorization in Project, Customer, and Activity Rate Edit Endpoints Allows Cross-Scope Rate Manipulation
• GHSA-xv4r-4885-gwpg — Kimai has Improper Authorization in Team Member and Team Activity Assignment APIs Which Allows Expansion of Team Scope Beyond Authorized Visibility
• GHSA-c6w6-57jj-62vh — Improper Authorization in Kimai Timesheet Restart and Duplicate Allows New Timesheets After Project Access Revocation
• GHSA-mvx4-532p-xfm9 — Open WebUI: Scheduled automations continue after pending-user deactivation and stored model ACL revocation

All advisories for CWE-285