CVE-2026-40099: kirby Auth Bypass — Fix

Description

Kirby is an open-source content management system. Kirby's user permissions control which user role is allowed to perform specific actions to content models in the CMS. These permissions are defined for each role in the user blueprint (`site/blueprints/users/...`). It is also possible to customize the permissions for each target model in the model blueprints (such as in `site/blueprints/pages/...`) using the `options` feature. The permissions and options together control the authorization of user actions. For pages, Kirby provides the `pages.create` and `pages.changeStatus` permissions (among others). Prior to versions 4.9.0 and 5.4.0, Kirby checked these permissions independently and only for the respective action. However the `changeStatus` permission didn't take effect on page creation. New pages are created as drafts by default and need to be published by changing the page status of an existing page draft. This is ensured when the page is created via the Kirby Panel. However the REST API allows to override the `isDraft` flag when creating a new page. This allowed authenticated attackers with the `pages.create` permission to immediately create published pages, bypassing the normal editorial workflow. The problem has been patched in Kirby 4.9.0 and Kirby 5.4.0. Kirby has added a check to the page creation rules that ensures that users without the `pages.changeStatus` permission cannot create published pages, only page drafts.

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CVSS v3.1 Score

6.5

MEDIUM

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N

EPSS — Exploit Prediction

0.0002

Probability of exploitation

0.07%

Percentile rank

EPSS estimates the probability that this vulnerability will be exploited in the wild within the next 30 days. A higher score means more likely to be exploited.

Weakness Type (CWE)

CWE-863 Incorrect Authorization

Affected Products

Vendor	Product	Versions
getkirby	kirby	< 4.9.0
getkirby	kirby	5.0.0 — 5.4.0

References

Advisories & Patches

https://github.com/getkirby/kirby/security/advisories/GHSA-w942-j9r6-hr6r

Other References

https://github.com/getkirby/kirby/releases/tag/4.9.0 https://github.com/getkirby/kirby/releases/tag/5.4.0

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-40099? +

Kirby is an open-source content management system. Kirby's user permissions control which user role is allowed to perform specific actions to content models in the CMS. These permissions are defined for each role in the user blueprint (`site/blueprints/users/...`). It is also possible to customize the permissions for each target model in the model blueprints (such as in `site/blueprints/pages/...`) using the `options` feature. The permissions and options together control the authorization of user actions. For pages, Kirby provides the `pages.create` and `pages.changeStatus` permissions (among others). Prior to versions 4.9.0 and 5.4.0, Kirby checked these permissions independently and only for the respective action. However the `changeStatus` permission didn't take effect on page creation. New pages are created as drafts by default and need to be published by changing the page status of an existing page draft. This is ensured when the page is created via the Kirby Panel. However the REST API allows to override the `isDraft` flag when creating a new page. This allowed authenticated attackers with the `pages.create` permission to immediately create published pages, bypassing the normal editorial workflow. The problem has been patched in Kirby 4.9.0 and Kirby 5.4.0. Kirby has added a check to the page creation rules that ensures that users without the `pages.changeStatus` permission cannot create published pages, only page drafts. It has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 6.5 (MEDIUM).

How severe is CVE-2026-40099? +

CVE-2026-40099 has a CVSS v3.1 score of 6.5 out of 10, rated MEDIUM. This is a medium-severity vulnerability that should be remediated as part of regular maintenance. The EPSS score is 0.0002, placing it in the 0th percentile for exploitation probability.

What products are affected by CVE-2026-40099? +

CVE-2026-40099 affects products from getkirby, specifically: kirby. Check the affected products table above for specific version ranges.

How do I check if I'm vulnerable to CVE-2026-40099? +

You can use Secably's free Website Scanner to check your website for known vulnerabilities. For infrastructure scanning, use the Port Scanner to identify exposed services that may be affected. Check the vendor advisories linked above for specific patch and version information.

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