CVE-2026-40968

Description

When an authenticated user is denied access to a gRPC method, their authenticated identity remains bound to the gRPC worker thread and can be inherited by a subsequent unauthenticated request on the same thread. This may allow the subsequent user to gain escalated permissions. Affected versions: Spring gRPC: 1.0.0 - 1.0.2 (fixed in 1.0.3). Older, unsupported versions are also affected.

CVSS v3.1 Score

4.2

MEDIUM

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

EPSS — Exploit Prediction

0.0003

Probability of exploitation

0.10%

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-653 CWE-653

Affected Products

Vendor	Product	Versions
vmware	spring_grpc	< 1.0.3

References

Advisories & Patches

https://spring.io/security/cve-2026-40968

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-40968? +

When an authenticated user is denied access to a gRPC method, their authenticated identity remains bound to the gRPC worker thread and can be inherited by a subsequent unauthenticated request on the same thread. This may allow the subsequent user to gain escalated permissions. Affected versions: Spring gRPC: 1.0.0 - 1.0.2 (fixed in 1.0.3). Older, unsupported versions are also affected. It has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 4.2 (MEDIUM).

How severe is CVE-2026-40968? +

CVE-2026-40968 has a CVSS v3.1 score of 4.2 out of 10, rated MEDIUM. This is a medium-severity vulnerability that should be remediated as part of regular maintenance. The EPSS score is 0.0003, placing it in the 0th percentile for exploitation probability.

What products are affected by CVE-2026-40968? +

CVE-2026-40968 affects products from vmware, specifically: spring_grpc. Check the affected products table above for specific version ranges.

How do I check if I'm vulnerable to CVE-2026-40968? +

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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