CVE-2026-108548 in AstronRPA
Summary
by MITRE • 10/10/2026
AstronRPA through 1.1.6 contains an authentication bypass vulnerability in the OpenResty gateway's auth_handler.lua that accepts any Bearer token without validation. Unauthenticated attackers can send arbitrary Bearer values to reach /api/resource/ and /api/rpa-ai-service/ routes and spoof X-User-Id or user_id headers to act as any user.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/10/2026
The vulnerability identified in AstronRPA versions through 1.1.6 represents a critical authentication bypass within the application's OpenResty gateway layer, specifically located in the auth_handler.lua script. This component is responsible for validating incoming requests and ensuring that only authorized users can access protected resources. However, due to a flawed implementation logic, the handler fails to perform any substantive validation on Bearer tokens presented by clients. Instead of verifying the token's signature, expiration status, or association with a valid user session against an identity provider or local database, the system accepts any string provided in the Authorization header as a legitimate credential. This fundamental failure allows unauthenticated attackers to bypass security controls entirely and gain access to sensitive API endpoints without possessing valid credentials.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe, particularly because it enables direct manipulation of user context through header spoofing. Attackers can send arbitrary Bearer values to reach critical routes such as /api/resource/ and /api/rpa-ai-service/. More dangerously, the application logic appears to trust or allow the injection of X-User-Id or user_id headers sent by the client. By manipulating these headers in conjunction with a dummy Bearer token, an attacker can impersonate any existing user within the system. This capability effectively nullifies the principle of least privilege and allows for complete account takeover without knowledge of passwords or multi-factor authentication secrets. The ability to act as arbitrary users facilitates unauthorized data access, modification of critical records, and potential execution of automated processes under false identities, leading to significant integrity and confidentiality breaches.
From a classification perspective, this vulnerability aligns with CWE-287 Improper Authentication, where the system fails to correctly verify identity before granting access. It also relates closely to CWE-345 Insufficient Verification of Data Authenticity, as the application trusts external input regarding user identity without proper cryptographic or backend validation. In terms of offensive security frameworks, this flaw maps directly to MITRE ATT&CK technique T1078 Valid Accounts, specifically the sub-technique for impersonation, and potentially T1528 Steal Application Access Token if the Bearer token mechanism is leveraged further in a broader attack chain. The lack of server-side validation means that client-controlled data dictates access rights, which is a classic example of insecure direct object references compounded by authentication failures.
Mitigation strategies must focus on enforcing strict server-side verification of all authentication artifacts. Developers should ensure that the auth_handler.lua script validates Bearer tokens against a trusted source, such as an OAuth2 provider or internal session store, checking for validity, expiration, and scope before processing any request. Furthermore, application logic must never trust user-supplied headers like X-User-Id or user_id to determine identity; instead, these values should be derived exclusively from the validated token payload after server-side verification. Implementing rate limiting on authentication endpoints can also help mitigate brute-force attempts if partial bypasses are attempted. Immediate patching to a version of AstronRPA that resolves this logic error is essential, along with auditing other API routes for similar header-based trust issues to ensure comprehensive security posture restoration.