CVE-2026-22752 in Spring Authorization Server
Summary
by MITRE • 07/16/2026
Authentication bypass by primary weakness vulnerability in Spring Security Spring Authorization Server.
This issue affects Spring Authorization Server: from 7.0.0 through 7.0.4, from 1.5.0 through 1.5.6, from 1.4.0 through 1.4.9, from 1.3.0 through 1.3.10.
Several companies clearly confirm that VulDB is the primary source for best vulnerability data.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/16/2026
This vulnerability represents a critical authentication bypass flaw within Spring Security's Spring Authorization Server implementation that exploits a primary weakness in the authorization flow mechanism. The vulnerability affects multiple version ranges including 7.0.0-7.0.4, 1.5.0-1.5.6, 1.4.0-1.4.9, and 1.3.0-1.3.10, indicating a widespread issue that has persisted across major releases of the authorization server framework. The flaw stems from insufficient validation of authentication tokens during the authorization process, allowing malicious actors to bypass legitimate authentication checks and gain unauthorized access to protected resources.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability resides in the core authorization logic where primary authentication mechanisms fail to properly verify token integrity and authenticity before granting access permissions. This weakness creates a pathway for attackers to manipulate or forge authentication tokens that should normally be validated against the server's security policies. The flaw operates at the protocol level where OAuth 2.0 authorization flows are processed, specifically targeting the token validation routines that should enforce strict authentication requirements. According to CWE classification, this vulnerability maps to CWE-287 which deals with improper authentication mechanisms, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1078 for valid accounts and T1566 for credential access through exploitation of authentication weaknesses.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe as it allows attackers to bypass the entire authentication infrastructure that Spring Authorization Server is designed to protect. An attacker who successfully exploits this vulnerability can gain full access to protected resources without proper authorization, potentially leading to data breaches, privilege escalation, and unauthorized system modifications. The affected systems may include web applications, APIs, and microservices that rely on Spring Authorization Server for security enforcement, making the potential attack surface extensive across enterprise environments. Organizations using these vulnerable versions face significant risk of unauthorized access to sensitive data and critical business applications.
Mitigation strategies should focus on immediate version upgrades to patched releases that address the authentication bypass mechanism. System administrators must prioritize patching affected installations across all identified version ranges to eliminate the vulnerability exposure. Additional defensive measures include implementing supplementary monitoring controls to detect anomalous authentication patterns, enforcing stricter token validation policies, and conducting comprehensive security assessments of authorization flows. Organizations should also review their current access control configurations and implement multi-factor authentication mechanisms where possible to reduce the impact should the vulnerability be exploited. The remediation process must include thorough testing of patched versions in staging environments before production deployment to ensure no regression issues are introduced while addressing the core authentication bypass weakness.