CVE-2025-3580 in Grafana
Summary
by MITRE • 05/23/2025
An access control vulnerability was discovered in Grafana OSS where an Organization administrator could permanently delete the Server administrator account. This vulnerability exists in the DELETE /api/org/users/ endpoint.
The vulnerability can be exploited when:
1. An Organization administrator exists
2. The Server administrator is either:
- Not part of any organization, or - Part of the same organization as the Organization administrator Impact:
- Organization administrators can permanently delete Server administrator accounts
- If the only Server administrator is deleted, the Grafana instance becomes unmanageable
- No super-user permissions remain in the system
- Affects all users, organizations, and teams managed in the instance
The vulnerability is particularly serious as it can lead to a complete loss of administrative control over the Grafana instance.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/17/2025
This access control vulnerability in Grafana OSS represents a critical escalation of privileges flaw that fundamentally undermines the security architecture of the platform. The vulnerability exists within the DELETE /api/org/users/ endpoint, which allows organization administrators to delete user accounts across the system. This flaw demonstrates a severe failure in the principle of least privilege and role-based access control mechanisms that should prevent organization-level users from having administrative capabilities over system-level accounts. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-284 Access Control, specifically addressing inadequate access control for administrative functions, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1078 Valid Accounts and T1484.1 Group Policy Modification, as it enables unauthorized account manipulation that can lead to complete system compromise.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability requires minimal prerequisites and presents a straightforward attack path for malicious organization administrators. When an organization administrator attempts to delete a user account through the vulnerable endpoint, the system fails to properly validate whether the target account possesses server administrator privileges. This validation failure occurs regardless of whether the server administrator account is part of any organization or exists independently. The flaw essentially removes the mandatory checks that should prevent organization administrators from deleting accounts that have elevated privileges, creating a direct path to system takeover. The vulnerability operates at the API level, making it particularly dangerous as it bypasses traditional user interface security controls and can be exploited programmatically.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends far beyond simple account deletion, creating a complete administrative control failure that renders the Grafana instance unusable. When the server administrator account is permanently deleted, the system loses all super-user capabilities, leaving administrators unable to perform essential maintenance, configuration changes, or security management tasks. This scenario creates a denial of service condition where the only remediation involves manual database intervention or complete system reinstallation, which can result in significant downtime and data loss. The vulnerability affects all users, organizations, and teams within the instance, meaning that a single compromised organization administrator can cause widespread system failure. This represents a critical failure in the system's integrity and availability, as the vulnerability can be exploited without requiring elevated privileges or specialized knowledge beyond basic administrative access.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should focus on immediate patching and architectural improvements to the access control system. Organizations should implement immediate administrative controls to restrict access to the vulnerable API endpoints and establish monitoring for user deletion activities. The solution requires implementing proper privilege validation that prevents organization administrators from deleting accounts with server-level permissions, regardless of organizational affiliation. Security measures should include mandatory audit trails for all user deletion operations, multi-factor authentication for administrative accounts, and role-based access control enhancements that enforce strict separation between organization-level and system-level administrative functions. Organizations should also consider implementing automated alerts for critical account deletion events and establish emergency procedures for system recovery when administrative accounts are compromised. The vulnerability highlights the importance of implementing defense-in-depth strategies and proper segregation of duties within security-critical applications, aligning with security frameworks such as NIST SP 800-53 and ISO 27001 controls for access control and system integrity.