Incorrect authorization in OpenStack Keystone
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- Security bypass
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- High · High · High
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 4 without a fix
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · NVD. Fix status from CNA, GitHub and Red Hat. Impact type from CWE-863.
Summary
An issue was discovered in OpenStack Keystone before 29.0.2. The Keystone RBAC policy enforcer in enforce_call unconditionally merges the raw JSON request body into the policy enforcement dictionary via policy_dict.update(json_input.copy()), overwriting trusted target data that was previously set from database lookups. Because flask.request.get_json is called with force=True, this works regardless of Content-Type or HTTP method. Any authenticated user can inject arbitrary policy target attributes (e.g., user_id, project_id) into the request body to bypass RBAC checks and perform unauthorized operations on resources belonging to other users or projects. This was introduced in commit 5ea59f52 (Rocky/14.0.0).
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- No
- 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OpenStack | Keystone | 14.0.0 to before 27.0.2; 28.0.0 to before 28.0.2; 29.0.0 to before 29.0.2 | 27.0.2, 28.0.2, 29.0.2 | Patch available | CNA |
| — | keystone (PyPI) | 14.0.0 to before 27.0.2 | 27.0.2 | Patch available | GHSA-2r23-2g6v-2m5f |
| — | keystone (PyPI) | 28.0.0 to before 28.0.2 | 28.0.2 | Patch available | GHSA-2r23-2g6v-2m5f |
| — | keystone (PyPI) | 29.0.0 to before 29.0.2 | 29.0.2 | Patch available | GHSA-2r23-2g6v-2m5f |
- Keystone VendorOpenStack Affected 14.0.0 to before 27.0.2; 28.0.0 to before 28.0.2; 29.0.0 to before 29.0.2 Fixed in 27.0.2, 28.0.2, 29.0.2 Patch available CNA
- keystone (PyPI) Vendor— Affected 14.0.0 to before 27.0.2 Fixed in 27.0.2 Patch available GHSA-2r23-2g6v-2m5f
- keystone (PyPI) Vendor— Affected 28.0.0 to before 28.0.2 Fixed in 28.0.2 Patch available GHSA-2r23-2g6v-2m5f
- keystone (PyPI) Vendor— Affected 29.0.0 to before 29.0.2 Fixed in 29.0.2 Patch available GHSA-2r23-2g6v-2m5f
CPE configurations NVD · 1
| CPE | Versions | Role | Vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| cpe:2.3:a:openstack:keystone:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 14.0.0 to before 27.0.2; 28.0.0 to before 28.0.2; 29.0.0 to before 29.0.2 | Vulnerable | OpenStack |
- cpe:2.3:a:openstack:keystone:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 14.0.0 to before 27.0.2; 28.0.0 to before 28.0.2; 29.0.0 to before 29.0.2 Vulnerable ·OpenStack
Remediation
- Fix · CNA Keystone (OpenStack) Fixed in 27.0.2, 28.0.2, 29.0.2
- Fix · GHSA-2r23-2g6v-2m5f keystone (PyPI) Fixed in 27.0.2 Advisory →
- Fix · GHSA-2r23-2g6v-2m5f keystone (PyPI) Fixed in 28.0.2 Advisory →
- Fix · GHSA-2r23-2g6v-2m5f keystone (PyPI) Fixed in 29.0.2 Advisory →
Fixed in the same release
Records fixed by the same vendor advisory or release, as the CNA lists them.
- Release ·
OpenStack Keystone 27.0.2, 28.0.2, 29.0.2
4 records Highest priority Priority LOW 4 LOW
Other records, highest priority first
- TI-2026-31180 Incorrect authorization in OpenStack KeystonePriority LOW 38
- TI-2026-31178 Incorrect authorization in OpenStack KeystonePriority LOW 38
- TI-2026-32344 Incorrect authorization in OpenStack KeystonePriority LOW 35
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Important. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat OpenStack Platform 13 (Queens) | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat OpenStack Platform 16.2 | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat OpenStack Platform 17.1 | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat OpenStack Platform 18.0 | Affected | No fix yet |
Not affected: 1 product
- Red Hat OpenStack Platform 13 (Queens)
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-42999
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-2r23-2g6v-2m5f
References
Other 5
- https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-42999
- https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2482840
- https://github.com/openstack/keystone
- https://github.com/pypa/advisory-database/tree/main/vulns/keystone/PYSEC-2026-600.yaml
- https://security.access.redhat.com/data/csaf/v2/vex/2026/cve-2026-42999.json
More OpenStack Keystone vulnerabilities
- TI-2026-25942 Incorrect authorization in OpenStack Keystone CVSS 3.1MEDIUM 5.3
- TI-2020-10091 An issue was discovered in OpenStack Keystone before 15.0.1, and 16.0.0. CVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
- TI-2020-10090 An issue was discovered in OpenStack Keystone before 15.0.1, and 16.0.0. CVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
- TI-2019-14184 OpenStack Keystone 15.0.0 and 16.0.0 is affected by Data Leakage in the list credentials… CVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
- TI-2020-10089 An issue was discovered in OpenStack Keystone before 15.0.1, and 16.0.0. CVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
- TI-2014-02273 The V3 API in OpenStack Identity (Keystone) 2013.1 before 2013.2.4 and icehouse before… CVSS 2.0HIGH 7.8
Sources
- CVE-2026-42999 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-42999 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-2r23-2g6v-2m5f · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2026-42999 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
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