CVE-2026-53713: Envoy Gateway Authentication Bypass Vulnerability
CRITICALCVE-2026-53713 is a CRITICAL (CVSS 9.1) authentication bypass vulnerability (CWE-20: Improper Input Validation) affecting Envoy Gateway libraries in the Go ecosystem. The issue involves authentication bypass via improper input validation in envoyextensionpolicy lua allows secret disclosure. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 1.8.1, 1.7.4.
CVE-2026-53713 at a Glance
Security Impact
CVSS: 9.1
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:H/I:L/A:L).
How to Fix CVE-2026-53713
To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Envoy Gateway dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.
Upgrade github.com/envoyproxy/gateway to 1.8.1Upgrade github.com/envoyproxy/gateway to 1.7.4Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release:
inspect dependencies for github.com/envoyproxy/gatewayHow to Check if You Are Affected
To determine whether your application is affected by CVE-2026-53713, inspect your project dependencies for Envoy Gateway:
inspect dependencies for github.com/envoyproxy/gatewayAnalyze the terminal output to locate any version of Envoy Gateway in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 1.8.1), your application is affected.
Note: Verify declared build manifests and deployed runtime container environments.
Technical Details
Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis
This vulnerability is classified under CWE-20: Improper Input Validation, where the product receives input or data, but it does not validate or incorrectly validates that the input has the properties that are required to process the data safely and correctly. In Envoy Gateway, 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
CVE-2026-53713 Affected Envoy Gateway Versions
2 component(s)| Product / Package | Ecosystem | Affected Versions | Fixed Version |
|---|---|---|---|
|
github.com/envoyproxy/gateway
|
Go |
≥ 1.8.0-rc.0
< 1.8.1
|
1.8.1
|
|
github.com/envoyproxy/gateway
|
Go |
< 1.7.4
|
1.7.4
|
References
Frequently Asked Questions
What is CVE-2026-53713?
Which Envoy Gateway versions are affected?
What version fixes CVE-2026-53713?
Is github.com/envoyproxy/gateway affected?
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2026-53713?
What CWE is associated with CVE-2026-53713?
How can I check Go dependencies for CVE-2026-53713?
Machine-readable OSV JSON
OSV v1.5 Schema
{
"schema_version" : "1.4.0",
"id" : "GHSA-wcrf-9vrr-854f",
"modified" : "2026-07-16T19:23:38Z",
"published" : "2026-07-16T19:23:38Z",
"aliases" : [ "CVE-2026-53713" ],
"summary" : "Envoy Gateway: Authentication Bypass via Improper Input Validation in EnvoyExtensionPolicy Lua Allows Secret Disclosure",
"details" : "### Impact\n\nThe `to_absolute_normalized_path` function (security.lua:28-43) does not collapse redundant path separators (// → /). On Linux, `//etc/passwd` is equivalent to `/etc/passwd` (POSIX path semantics), but `is_critical_path` fails to match the double-slash variant because `//etc/passwd` does not start with `/etc/`.\n\nThis allows Lua code submitted as an `EnvoyExtensionPolicy` to read arbitrary files from the gateway controller pod's filesystem during Strict validation (the default), including:\n\n* `/etc/passwd`\n* Kubernetes SA tokens via `//var/run/secrets/kubernetes.io/serviceaccount/token`\n* TLS certificates via `//certs/...`\n* Process environment via `//proc/self/environ`\n\nThese credentials can be used to read sensitive information from the K8s API Server or from the Gateway XDS server.\n\n### Patches\n\nThis has been patched in versions >= v1.7.4 and v1.8.1\n\n - Collapse redundant path separators (`//` to `/`) so double-slash variants like `//etc/passwd` and `//var/run/secrets/...` are matched by the critical-path check.\n - Rewrite the traversal check to reject any `.` or `..` segment in any position and across both separator styles (catches `/etc/./passwd`, `./etc/passwd`, `/etc/.`).\n\n### Workarounds\nPlease refer to the `Warning` section in [Lua docs](https://gateway.envoyproxy.io/v1.8/tasks/extensibility/lua/) for measures to reduce risk.\n\n### Credits\n\nEnvoy Gateway thanks @dashingDragon and @Donjon-Cerberus for reporting this issue.",
"severity" : [ {
"type" : "CVSS_V3",
"score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:L/A:L"
} ],
"affected" : [ {
"package" : {
"ecosystem" : "Go",
"name" : "github.com/envoyproxy/gateway"
},
"ranges" : [ {
"type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
"events" : [ {
"introduced" : "1.8.0-rc.0"
}, {
"fixed" : "1.8.1"
} ]
} ]
}, {
"package" : {
"ecosystem" : "Go",
"name" : "github.com/envoyproxy/gateway"
},
"ranges" : [ {
"type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
"events" : [ {
"introduced" : "0"
}, {
"fixed" : "1.7.4"
} ]
} ]
} ],
"references" : [ {
"type" : "WEB",
"url" : "https://github.com/envoyproxy/gateway/security/advisories/GHSA-wcrf-9vrr-854f"
}, {
"type" : "PACKAGE",
"url" : "https://github.com/envoyproxy/gateway"
} ],
"database_specific" : {
"cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-20" ],
"severity" : "CRITICAL",
"github_reviewed" : true,
"github_reviewed_at" : "2026-07-16T19:23:38Z",
"nvd_published_at" : null
}
}