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CVE-2026-78560· NVD / CVE Program· CNA Okta

Improper Authentication Validation in Okta Access Gateway Pass-Through Authentication Source

The Okta Access Gateway includes an optional pass-through authentication source that accepts user identity from a client-supplied HTTP header without cryptographic validation. In architectures where this optional source is enabled without an upstream reverse proxy or firewall configured to sanitize and enforce client headers, an unauthenticated user can supply an arbitrary identity value to initiate a session.

MediumCVSS 6.5 · v3.1—No exploit Fix available
Published
Sep 8, 2026
Updated
Sep 23, 2026
EPSS
0.2% · 9th percentile
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Action score

26

Monitor

Low priority for now.

CVSS
26 / 40 · 6.5 / 10
CISA KEV
0 / 30 · Not listed
EPSS
0 / 30 · 0.2%

CISA SSVC decision

Exploitation
none
Automatable
no
Technical impact
partial

Vulnrichment: CISA's decision-tree inputs.

CNA vs NVD score

NVD
6.5
CNA · Okta
4.8
1.7 point gap

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:N

The score given by the assigning authority versus NVD’s independent score. A gap means the severity is contested.

Noroxi analysis

No Noroxi analysis for this record yet

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Affected systems

VendorProduct
oktaaccess gateway

Affected versions

NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.

  • okta access gatewaybefore 2026.9.1

Versions reported by the vendor

Affected version ranges reported by the assigning authority (Okta). Independent of NVD's CPE analysis and usually ahead of it.

  • Okta Okta Access Gateway

    • before 2026.9.1affected · semver

Same product

okta: all records

Other highest-scoring records for the same primary product.

  • CVE-2026-78623Improper Handling of SAML Assertion Attributes in Okta Access Gateway Advanced Mode Datastores
    39Monitor
  • CVE-2021-28113A command injection vulnerability in the cookieDomain and relayDomain parameters of Okta Access Gateway before 2020.9.3 allows attackers (wi
    33Monitor
  • CVE-2026-78550Improper Input Handling in Okta Access Gateway Management Console Exception Handler
    28Monitor
  • CVE-2026-78545Improper Input Sanitization in Okta Access Gateway Application Label Configuration
    28Monitor
  • CVE-2026-78630Improper Input Neutralization in Okta Access Gateway SNMP Configuration Processing
    26Monitor
  • CVE-2026-78626Improper Input Sanitization in Okta Access Gateway Protected Rules
    26Monitor

Remediation

Which version to upgrade to

Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.

Product / packageFixed versionSource
Okta Okta Access Gateway2026.9.1Vendor (CNA)

Exploit status

No known public exploit

No public exploit has been observed yet. That doesn't mean you're safe, only that the bar is a little higher.

Research context

For pentesters and researchers: attack profile, score disagreement, timeline, patch commits, credits, variant and chain candidates, bug bounty scope. All derived from existing data; no exploit code.

Timeline

From publication to today: proof of concept, Metasploit module, CISA KEV and fix record. Dates are as reported by the sources.

No dated events beyond publication.

EPSS, last 120 days

FIRST EPSS daily score; only changes of 0.01 or more are recorded (step chart).

Patch and commit links

Commit, PR and diff links among the references. A starting point for patch-diffing and variant hunting; fixes, not exploits.

No commit or PR link among the references.

Credits

All researchers

Finders, reporters and analysts named in the CNA record. Click a name for that researcher’s other records.

No credits in the CNA record.

Variant candidates

Same product, same weakness class, within 18 months. If the patch missed the root cause, the sibling bug is here.

—

Chain candidates

An authentication bypass and a privilege-requiring bug in the same product, published close together: combined they may become an unauthenticated path.

  • CVE-2026-785450 days apartImproper Input Sanitization in Okta Access Gateway Application Label Configuration
    28Monitor
  • CVE-2026-785500 days apartImproper Input Handling in Okta Access Gateway Management Console Exception Handler
    28Monitor
  • CVE-2026-786250 days apartInsufficient Validation of Dashboard Application Labels in Okta Access Gateway Dashboard Site Configuration
    26Monitor
  • CVE-2026-786240 days apartImproper Path Validation in Okta Access Gateway Backup and Restore Functionality
    19Monitor

Bug bounty scope

The product’s vendor appears in a public program. Matched by name; verify the scope text in the program.

Technical details

Attack conditions

  • Anyone who can reach it over the internet can trigger it.
  • No account or password is required.
  • No user action is required.
  • No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.

If successful

Confidentiality
low · data can be read
Integrity
low · data or configuration can be modified
Availability
none
Attack vector
Network
Attack complexity
Low
Privileges required
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality impact
Low
Integrity impact
Low
Availability impact
None

Weakness class (CWE)

CWE-287 · Improper Authentication

CVSS vector

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:N

nvd-primary

Root cause

Authentication is added route by route instead of being enforced in one place. When a route added later bypasses the shared middleware, the session check never runs for it.

The bug in code

The whole CWE-287 class

A representative example of this vulnerability class. Not the vendor's source code; it shows the faulty pattern and its fix.

Vulnerable

ts
app.use("/admin", requireSession, adminRouter);
// Route added later skips the middlewareapp.post("/admin-api/config", updateConfig);

Fixed

ts
const admin = express.Router();admin.use(requireSession, requireRole("admin"));
admin.post("/config", updateConfig);app.use("/admin", admin);

Attack context

MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.

Change log

  1. Fix✗ → ✓

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References

Vendor advisories and official records. Exploit/PoC links are deliberately left out.

All records