Spring gRPC SecurityContext leaks across requests on authorization failure
Summary
| CVE | CVE-2026-40968 |
|---|---|
| State | PUBLISHED |
| Assigner | vmware |
| Source Priority | CVE Program / NVD first with legacy fallback |
| Published | 2026-04-28 15:16:30 UTC |
| Updated | 2026-04-30 13:32:58 UTC |
| Description | When an authenticated user is denied access to a gRPC method, their authenticated identity remains bound to the gRPC worker thread and can be inherited by a subsequent unauthenticated request on the same thread. This may allow the subsequent user to gain escalated permissions. Affected versions: Spring gRPC: 1.0.0 - 1.0.2 (fixed in 1.0.3). Older, unsupported versions are also affected. |
Risk And Classification
Primary CVSS: v3.1 8.8 HIGH from [email protected]
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS: 0.000310000 probability, percentile 0.086990000 (date 2026-05-03)
Problem Types: CWE-653 | CWE-653 CWE-653: Improper Isolation or Compartmentalization
| Version | Source | Type | Score | Severity | Vector |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.1 | [email protected] | Primary | 8.8 | HIGH | CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H |
| 3.1 | [email protected] | Secondary | 4.2 | MEDIUM | CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:N |
| 3.1 | CNA | CVSS | 4.3 | MEDIUM | CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:N |
CVSS v3.1 Breakdown
Attack Vector
NetworkAttack Complexity
LowPrivileges Required
LowUser Interaction
NoneScope
UnchangedConfidentiality
HighIntegrity
HighAvailability
HighCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
NVD Known Affected Configurations (CPE 2.3)
| Type | Vendor | Product | Version | Update | Edition | Language |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Application | Vmware | Spring Grpc | All | All | All | All |
Vendor Declared Affected Products
| Source | Vendor | Product | Version | Platforms |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CNA | Spring | Spring GRPC | affected 1.0.0 1.0.3 custom | Not specified |
References
| Reference | Source | Link | Tags |
|---|---|---|---|
| spring.io/security/cve-2026-40968 | [email protected] | spring.io | Vendor Advisory |
| CVE Program record | CVE.ORG | www.cve.org | canonical |
| NVD vulnerability detail | NVD | nvd.nist.gov | canonical, analysis |
No vendor comments have been submitted for this CVE.
There are currently no legacy QID mappings associated with this CVE.