CVE-2025-70866 identifies an Incorrect Access Control vulnerability in LavaLite CMS version 10.1.0. The core issue stems from the authentication architecture where both admin and regular user roles share the same user provider, but the system fails to enforce role-based access control (RBAC) during authentication. Specifically, a user with a low-level role (User) can authenticate via the /admin/login endpoint and gain unauthorized access to the administrative backend. This bypass occurs because the authentication guards do not verify the user's role before granting access to admin functionalities. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-284 (Improper Access Control). The CVSS v3.1 base score is 8.8, indicating high severity, with vector metrics showing network attack vector (AV:N), low attack complexity (AC:L), requiring privileges (PR:L), no user interaction (UI:N), unchanged scope (S:U), and high impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability (C:H/I:H/A:H). No patches or public exploits are currently available, but the flaw allows an attacker with valid low-level credentials to escalate privileges to full admin control, potentially leading to full system compromise, data theft, defacement, or service disruption.

The vulnerability allows authenticated low-privilege users to escalate their privileges to administrative level, resulting in a complete compromise of the affected CMS instance. This can lead to unauthorized data access, modification or deletion of content, insertion of malicious code or backdoors, and disruption of service availability. Organizations relying on LavaLite CMS for website or application management face risks including data breaches, reputational damage, regulatory non-compliance, and potential lateral movement within internal networks if the CMS is integrated with other systems. Since the exploit requires only low-level credentials and no user interaction beyond login, the attack surface is broad for any organization with user accounts. The lack of current public exploits reduces immediate risk but also means organizations must proactively address the vulnerability before exploitation occurs.

Organizations should immediately audit their LavaLite CMS installations to identify affected versions (notably 10.1.0). Until an official patch is released, administrators should implement strict network-level access controls restricting access to the /admin/login endpoint to trusted IP addresses or VPN users only. Review and enforce role-based access control policies within the CMS configuration to ensure that authentication guards verify user roles before granting admin access. Consider deploying Web Application Firewalls (WAFs) with custom rules to detect and block unauthorized admin login attempts by low-privileged users. Monitor authentication logs for suspicious access patterns, especially attempts by low-privilege users to access admin endpoints. Educate users on the importance of strong, unique credentials to reduce risk of credential compromise. Once a vendor patch is available, apply it promptly and validate the fix through penetration testing or code review.