CVE-2025-5988 in Ansible Automation Platform
Summary
by MITRE • 08/04/2025
A flaw was found in the Ansible aap-gateway. Cross-site request forgery (CSRF) origin checking is not done on requests from the gateway to external components, such as the controller, hub, and eda.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/13/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2025-5988 represents a critical cross-site request forgery weakness within the Ansible aap-gateway component. This flaw exists in the authorization and validation mechanisms that govern how the gateway handles requests to external Ansible components including the controller, hub, and eda services. The absence of proper origin checking creates a significant security gap that allows malicious actors to exploit the system through crafted requests that appear to originate from legitimate sources within the Ansible ecosystem.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from the gateway's failure to validate the origin of requests when communicating with external Ansible components. This weakness specifically impacts the authentication and authorization flows that should normally verify the legitimacy of request sources before processing sensitive operations. Without proper CSRF token validation or origin verification, an attacker can potentially manipulate the gateway into performing unauthorized actions on behalf of authenticated users. The flaw operates at the application layer and affects the integrity of the communication protocols used between the gateway and downstream Ansible services.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple privilege escalation as it could enable attackers to perform unauthorized administrative actions within the Ansible environment. An attacker who successfully exploits this weakness could potentially modify configurations, execute arbitrary commands, or manipulate workflows across the connected Ansible components. This vulnerability is particularly concerning in enterprise environments where Ansible gateways often serve as central points of control for infrastructure automation, making the potential attack surface significant. The impact is amplified when considering that the affected components include the controller which manages Ansible automation workflows, the hub which provides central access points, and the eda component responsible for event-driven automation processes.
Organizations utilizing Ansible aap-gateway should immediately implement mitigations including the enforcement of proper CSRF token validation mechanisms, implementation of strict origin checking for all external communications, and regular security audits of gateway configurations. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-352 which specifically addresses cross-site request forgery weaknesses in web applications. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to techniques involving privilege escalation and initial access through application layer attacks. Security teams should also consider implementing network segmentation, monitoring for unusual gateway-to-component communications, and ensuring that all external service communications are properly authenticated and authorized. The recommended remediation includes updating to patched versions of the Ansible aap-gateway software, implementing additional authentication layers, and conducting comprehensive security assessments of all gateway-to-component communication channels to prevent unauthorized manipulation of automation workflows.