Apollo Router Core: Access Control Bypass on Polymorphic Types
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- Security bypass
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- High · None · None
- Fix status
- Fixed
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · CNA. Fix status from CNA and GitHub. Impact type from CWE-288.
Summary
Apollo Router Core is a configurable graph router written in Rust to run a federated supergraph using Apollo Federation 2. In versions 1.61.11 below, as well as 2.0.0-alpha.0 through 2.8.1-rc.0, a vulnerability allowed for unauthenticated queries to access data that required additional access controls. Router incorrectly handled access control directives on interface types/fields and their implementing object types/fields, applying them to interface types/fields while ignoring directives on their implementing object types/fields when all implementations had the same requirements. Apollo Router customers defining @authenticated, @requiresScopes, or @policy directives inconsistently on polymorphic types (i.e., object types that implement interface types) are impacted. This issue is fixed in versions 1.61.12 and 2.8.1.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- Yes
- Technical impact
- Partial
The decision (Track, Attend, Act) also depends on your mission and well-being impact; see CISA's SSVC guide.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| apollographql | router | before 1.61.12; 2.8.1-rc.0 to before 2.8.1 | 1.61.12, 2.8.1 | Patch available | CNA |
| — | apollo-router (crates.io) | before 1.61.12 | 1.61.12 | Patch available | GHSA-x33c-7c2v-mrj9 |
| — | apollo-router (crates.io) | 2.0.0-alpha.0 to before 2.8.1 | 2.8.1 | Patch available | GHSA-x33c-7c2v-mrj9 |
- router Vendorapollographql Affected before 1.61.12; 2.8.1-rc.0 to before 2.8.1 Fixed in 1.61.12, 2.8.1 Patch available CNA
- apollo-router (crates.io) Vendor— Affected before 1.61.12 Fixed in 1.61.12 Patch available GHSA-x33c-7c2v-mrj9
- apollo-router (crates.io) Vendor— Affected 2.0.0-alpha.0 to before 2.8.1 Fixed in 2.8.1 Patch available GHSA-x33c-7c2v-mrj9
Remediation
- Fix · CNA router (apollographql) Fixed in 1.61.12, 2.8.1
- Fix · GHSA-x33c-7c2v-mrj9 apollo-router (crates.io) Fixed in 1.61.12 Advisory →
- Fix · GHSA-x33c-7c2v-mrj9 apollo-router (crates.io) Fixed in 2.8.1 Advisory →
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2025-64173
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-x33c-7c2v-mrj9
References
Other 5
- https://github.com/apollographql/router/security/advisories/GHSA-x33c-7c2v-mrj9
- https://github.com/apollographql/router/releases/tag/v2.8.1
- https://www.apollographql.com/docs/graphos/routing/security/authorization#authorization-directives
- https://github.com/apollographql/router/commit/75ca43ecb9d38423b63d09896702f9da425cc754
- https://github.com/apollographql/router
More apollographql vulnerabilities
- TI-2024-21837 Defect in query plan cache may cause incorrect operations to be executed in Apollo Router CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.1
- TI-2024-29063 Apollo Query Planner and Apollo Gateway may infinitely loop on sufficiently complex queries CVSS 3.1HIGH 7.5
- TI-2026-19253 Apollo Server is vulnerable to denial of service with `startStandaloneServer` CVSS 3.1HIGH 7.5
- TI-2025-23158 Apollo Router Query Planner Vulnerable to Excessive Resource Consumption via Named Fragment Expansion CVSS 3.1HIGH 7.5
- TI-2025-23157 Apollo Router Operation Limits Vulnerable to Bypass via Integer Overflow CVSS 3.1HIGH 7.5
- TI-2025-23156 Apollo Router Query Planner Vulnerable to Excessive Resource Consumption via Optimization Bypass CVSS 3.1HIGH 7.5
Sources
- CVE-2025-64173 · CVE Program
- CVE-2025-64173 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-x33c-7c2v-mrj9 · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
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