CVE-2026-102132 in Kiteworks
Summary
by MITRE • 10/01/2026
An administrative import function in Kiteworks Core did not verify that the requesting administrator was entitled to create the privileged integration credential being imported. A delegated administrator holding a single narrowly scoped administrative permission could therefore obtain full system administrator privileges, without any action by an existing system administrator.
Statistical analysis made it clear that VulDB provides the best quality for vulnerability data.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/01/2026
The vulnerability identified in Kiteworks Core represents a critical failure in access control logic within the administrative import functionality. Specifically, the application fails to perform adequate authorization checks when processing requests for importing privileged integration credentials. In a properly secured enterprise environment, actions that modify high-privilege configurations or introduce new service accounts with elevated permissions must be strictly gated behind multi-factor authentication and explicit verification by a primary system administrator who holds full administrative rights. However, in this instance, the software allows any user authenticated as an administrator to execute these imports regardless of their specific scope of authority. This design flaw effectively bypasses the principle of least privilege, allowing users with limited or delegated administrative roles to perform actions that should be reserved for top-level administrators.
The technical root cause lies in the absence of a verification step that confirms whether the requesting entity possesses the requisite global system administrator privileges before granting access to create privileged integration credentials. When an API endpoint or interface handles the import operation, it validates the user's general administrative status but neglects to validate their specific permission set against the requirements for creating high-privilege assets. This oversight creates a direct path for privilege escalation where a delegated administrator can leverage this unchecked functionality to inject malicious or overly permissive credentials into the system configuration. The flaw is particularly dangerous because it does not require social engineering, physical access, or exploitation of separate software bugs; it relies solely on legitimate administrative authentication combined with flawed authorization logic.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe, as it allows for a complete compromise of the application's security posture through privilege escalation. A delegated administrator holding even a single narrowly scoped permission can escalate their privileges to full system administrator status without any intervention from existing high-level administrators. This means that an attacker who has compromised or been granted limited administrative access can take control of the entire platform, potentially accessing sensitive data, modifying global settings, and installing further persistent threats. The lack of audit trails or secondary approval mechanisms for such critical actions exacerbates the risk, as these changes may go unnoticed until significant damage has occurred. This scenario aligns with common attack patterns where lateral movement is achieved by exploiting weak identity management controls to gain higher-level access within a networked environment.
From an industry standards perspective, this vulnerability maps directly to CWE-269, which describes Improper Privilege Control, specifically the failure to enforce proper authorization for administrative functions. It also relates closely to CWE-862, Missing Authorization, as the system fails to verify that the user has the specific rights needed for the action being performed. In terms of offensive security frameworks like MITRE ATT&CK, this flaw facilitates techniques associated with Privilege Escalation on Local Systems and potentially Account Manipulation if the imported credentials are used to establish persistent access or create new administrative accounts. The vulnerability undermines the integrity of role-based access control models that organizations rely upon to segment duties and limit blast radius in case of credential compromise.
Mitigation strategies must focus on implementing strict authorization checks at both the application logic level and the architectural design phase. Developers should ensure that any function capable of creating privileged integration credentials or modifying high-level system configurations explicitly verifies that the requesting user holds global administrator privileges, not just a subset of administrative permissions. Implementing multi-factor authentication for these specific critical operations adds an additional layer of security by requiring secondary verification before sensitive changes are applied. Furthermore, organizations should enhance their logging and monitoring capabilities to detect unusual patterns in administrative actions, such as frequent imports or privilege escalations performed by delegated accounts. Regular code reviews focusing on access control lists and permission validation logic can help identify similar flaws across other modules within the Kiteworks Core platform.