CVE-2026-75030 in Syncope
Summary
by MITRE • 09/14/2026
Missing Authorization vulnerability in Apache Syncope.
An administrator with task execution entitlements might be able to mass (de)provision group members, regardless of their group-related administration capabilities.
This issue affects Apache Syncope: from 3.0.0-M0 through 3.0.16, from 4.0.0-M0 Through 4.0.7, from 4.1.0-M0 through 4.1.2.
Users are recommended to upgrade to version 4.0.8 / 4.1.3, which fix this issue.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/14/2026
The vulnerability identified in Apache Syncope represents a critical failure in access control mechanisms, specifically categorized under CWE-862: Missing Authorization. This flaw allows an authenticated user with specific task execution entitlements to perform administrative actions that exceed their intended privileges. In the context of Identity and Access Management systems like Apache Syncope, proper separation of duties is essential for maintaining security integrity. The vulnerability arises because the system fails to verify whether a user has explicit group-related administration capabilities before allowing them to execute mass provisioning or deprovisioning operations on group members. This oversight creates a significant gap in the enforcement of role-based access control policies, enabling privilege escalation through functional misuse rather than traditional exploitation techniques.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability poses severe risks to organizational security posture. An attacker who obtains credentials for an account with task execution rights can manipulate user memberships across groups without possessing direct administrative permissions over those specific groups. This capability facilitates unauthorized data access by adding users to privileged groups or removing them from restrictive ones. It also enables potential denial of service scenarios if large-scale deprovisioning is executed, disrupting business continuity and identity synchronization processes. Furthermore, the ability to mass modify group memberships can be leveraged for lateral movement within an enterprise network, as attackers may gain access to sensitive resources associated with those groups without triggering typical administrative audit alerts designed for direct role changes.
The affected versions of Apache Syncope include releases from 3.0.0-M0 through 3.0.16 and from 4.0.0-M0 through 4.0.7, as well as the 4.1.x series up to version 4.1.2. These ranges indicate that both older maintenance branches and newer development tracks were impacted by this logic error in the authorization layer. The vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1098: Account Manipulation, specifically sub-techniques involving group membership changes such as SSH Authorized Keys or Cloud Group Membership modifications depending on the integration context. Attackers can exploit this flaw to persistently maintain access or expand their scope of influence within the identity infrastructure by altering who has access to what resources through indirect administrative channels.
Mitigation strategies primarily involve upgrading Apache Syncope to version 4.0.8, 4.1.3, or later releases where this authorization check has been corrected. Organizations should immediately audit their current deployment versions and plan for a controlled upgrade window to minimize disruption. In addition to patching, administrators should review existing role definitions and entitlement assignments to ensure that task execution permissions are granted only to users who genuinely require them for operational duties. Implementing stricter separation of duties policies can further reduce risk by ensuring that the same account does not hold both general task execution rights and sensitive group administration capabilities unless absolutely necessary. Regular auditing of administrative actions and monitoring for unusual mass membership changes can also help detect potential exploitation attempts in environments where immediate patching is not feasible.