CVE-2026-83805: Nautobot Authorization Bypass Vulnerability

MODERATE
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-q4c5-2j6f-r476
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CVSS 6.4
CWE-639 CWE-285
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2026-83805 is a MODERATE (CVSS 6.4) authorization bypass vulnerability (CWE-639: Authorization Bypass Through User-Controlled Key) affecting Nautobot libraries in the PyPI ecosystem. The issue involves authorization bypass in approval workflow rest api allows self-approval and unauthorized activation of scheduled jobs. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 3.1.8.

CVE-2026-83805 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2026-83805
GHSA Identifier GHSA-q4c5-2j6f-r476
Severity MODERATE
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 6.4
CWE Classification CWE-639: Authorization Bypass Through User-Controlled Key
Affected Product Nautobot
Package Ecosystem PyPI
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 6.4

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N).

Attack Vector Network (AV:N)
Attack Complexity Low (AC:L)
Privileges Required Low (PR:L)
User Interaction None (UI:N)
Scope Changed (S:C)
Confidentiality Low (C:L)
Integrity Low (I:L)
Availability None (A:N)

How to Fix CVE-2026-83805

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Nautobot dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

nautobot fixed: 3.1.8 
pip install nautobot>=3.1.8
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release: 

pip show nautobot

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Python environment is affected by CVE-2026-83805, inspect your installed packages using pip:

pip show nautobot

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Nautobot in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 3.1.8), your application is affected.

Note: The pip show nautobot command checks currently installed packages in your active Python environment.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-639: Authorization Bypass Through User-Controlled Key, where the system's authorization functionality does not prevent one user from gaining access to another user's data or record by modifying the key value identifying the data. In Nautobot, software state validation or input boundaries are circumvented during processing. Review the official source advisory statement below for specific affected components, classes, and reproduction details.

Source Advisory Statement

### Impact This is an authorization bypass that escalates into unauthorized server-side job execution. 1. Primary impact - self-approval: The approver checks (approver-group membership, `change` permission on the object under review, one-response-per-user) are enforced only in the `approve`/`deny` actions on `ApprovalWorkflowStage`. The generic `ApprovalWorkflowStageResponse` create endpoint enforces none of them, so a user holding only `extras.add_approvalworkflowstageresponse` can `POST` approved responses directly and drive a stage past its `min_approvers` threshold with no legitimate approver involved. The serializer also exposes `user` and `state` as writable, letting the attacker attribute responses to arbitrary users. 2. Escalated impact job activation: Because the approval workflow gates a `ScheduledJob`, self-approval does not stop at the approval record. Stage approval cascades through `ApprovalWorkflow.save()` to `on_workflow_approved()`, which sets the target job to enabled/active. ### Patches Fixed in Nautobot v3.1.8 ### Workarounds Restrict the `extras.add_approvalworkflowstageresponse` permission so that no untrusted user holds it; approval responses should only ever be created via the stage `approve`/`deny` actions. There is no configuration flag that disables the generic create endpoint prior to the patch.

CVE-2026-83805 Affected Nautobot Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
3.1.8
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
nautobot
pypi/nautobot
PyPI
≥ 3.0.0
< 3.1.8
3.1.8

References

GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/nautobot/nautobot/security/advisories/GHSA-q4c5-2j6f-r476
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/nautobot/nautobot/commit/8682707d0391cbfd7694e3276127b78dc9cf29d8
Nautobot Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/nautobot/nautobot
Nautobot Release RELEASE
https://github.com/nautobot/nautobot/releases/tag/v3.1.8

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-83805?
CVE-2026-83805 is a security vulnerability in Nautobot involving Authorization bypass in approval workflow REST API allows self-approval and unauthorized activation of scheduled jobs under CWE-639: Authorization Bypass Through User-Controlled Key.
Which Nautobot versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 3.1.8 across affected packages: nautobot.
What version fixes CVE-2026-83805?
Upgrading to 3.1.8 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is nautobot affected?
Yes, nautobot is affected in releases prior to 3.1.8. Upgrade your dependency to 3.1.8 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2026-83805?
CVE-2026-83805 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 6.4 (MODERATE) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2026-83805?
CVE-2026-83805 is classified under CWE-639: Authorization Bypass Through User-Controlled Key (The system's authorization functionality does not prevent one user from gaining access to another user's data or record by modifying the key value identifying the data.).
How can I check PyPI dependencies for CVE-2026-83805?
Run the dependency tree command: 'pip show nautobot'. This command lists direct and transitive dependencies in your build configuration so you can verify if a vulnerable version is resolved.
Machine-readable OSV JSON OSV v1.5 Schema
Normalized schema output
View Raw JSON 
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-q4c5-2j6f-r476",
  "modified" : "2026-09-22T20:37:33Z",
  "published" : "2026-09-22T20:37:33Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2026-83805" ],
  "summary" : "Nautobot: Authorization bypass in approval workflow REST API allows self-approval and unauthorized activation of scheduled jobs",
  "details" : "### Impact\nThis is an authorization bypass that escalates into unauthorized server-side job execution.\n\n1. Primary impact - self-approval: The approver checks (approver-group membership, `change` permission on the object under review, one-response-per-user) are enforced only in the `approve`/`deny` actions on `ApprovalWorkflowStage`. The generic `ApprovalWorkflowStageResponse` create endpoint enforces none of them, so a user holding only `extras.add_approvalworkflowstageresponse` can `POST` approved responses directly and drive a stage past its `min_approvers` threshold with no legitimate approver involved. The serializer also exposes `user` and `state` as writable, letting the attacker attribute responses to arbitrary users.\n\n2. Escalated impact  job activation: Because the approval workflow gates a `ScheduledJob`, self-approval does not stop at the approval record. Stage approval cascades through `ApprovalWorkflow.save()` to `on_workflow_approved()`, which sets the target job to enabled/active.\n\n### Patches\n\nFixed in Nautobot v3.1.8\n\n### Workarounds\nRestrict the `extras.add_approvalworkflowstageresponse` permission so that no untrusted user holds it; approval responses should only ever be created via the stage `approve`/`deny` actions. There is no configuration flag that disables the generic create endpoint prior to the patch.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "PyPI",
      "name" : "nautobot"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "3.0.0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "3.1.8"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/nautobot/nautobot/security/advisories/GHSA-q4c5-2j6f-r476"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/nautobot/nautobot/commit/8682707d0391cbfd7694e3276127b78dc9cf29d8"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/nautobot/nautobot"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/nautobot/nautobot/releases/tag/v3.1.8"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-285", "CWE-639" ],
    "severity" : "MODERATE",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2026-09-22T20:37:33Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : null
  }
}