VulnerabilityPublished 18 Mar 2026Updated 20 Mar 2026

CVE-2026-33042: parse-server · Improper Authentication

Affects parse-serverSource CVE Database V5

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Not known to be exploited · CVSS 6.9 Medium : upgrade to 9.6.0-alpha.29 or 8.6.49 when convenient.

Data as of 30 Oct 2026, 20:25 UTC

CVSS 4.0 base score

6.9Medium

How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.

EPSS: 0.3% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 23% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available – fixed in 9.6.0-alpha.29, 8.6.49

CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:L/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N

Attack Vector: Network
Attack Complexity: Low
Attack Requirements: None
Privileges Required: None
User Interaction: None
Vulnerable system confidentiality: None
Vulnerable system integrity: Low
Vulnerable system availability: None
Subsequent system confidentiality: None
Subsequent system integrity: None
Subsequent system availability: None

Bold values are the worst case: easiest to exploit or largest impact.

Attack Vector: Network: The vulnerable system is bound to the network stack and the set of possible attackers extends beyond the other options listed below, up to and including the entire Internet. Such a vulnerability is often termed “remotely exploitable” and can be thought of as an attack being exploitable at the protocol level one or more network hops away (e.g., across one or more routers).
Attack Complexity: Low: The attacker must take no measurable action to exploit the vulnerability. The attack requires no target-specific circumvention to exploit the vulnerability. An attacker can expect repeatable success against the vulnerable system.
Attack Requirements: None: The successful attack does not depend on the deployment and execution conditions of the vulnerable system. The attacker can expect to be able to reach the vulnerability and execute the exploit under all or most instances of the vulnerability.
Privileges Required: None: The attacker is unauthorized prior to attack, and therefore does not require any access to settings or files of the vulnerable system to carry out an attack.
User Interaction: None: The vulnerable system can be exploited without interaction from any human user, other than the attacker.
Vulnerable system confidentiality: None: There is no loss of confidentiality within the Vulnerable System.
Vulnerable system integrity: Low: Modification of data is possible, but the attacker does not have control over the consequence of a modification, or the amount of modification is limited. The data modification does not have a direct, serious impact to the Vulnerable System.
Vulnerable system availability: None: There is no impact to availability within the Vulnerable System.
Subsequent system confidentiality: None: There is no loss of confidentiality within the Subsequent System or all confidentiality impact is constrained to the Vulnerable System.
Subsequent system integrity: None: There is no loss of integrity within the Subsequent System or all integrity impact is constrained to the Vulnerable System.
Subsequent system availability: None: There is no impact to availability within the Subsequent System or all availability impact is constrained to the Vulnerable System.

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v4.0 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 18 Mar 2026
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponized: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 30 Oct 2026.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponized: A Metasploit exploit module or Exploit-DB entry exists (Metasploit scanner modules do not count), or CISA SSVC or the CVSS exploit maturity reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

Upgrade parse-server to 9.6.0-alpha.29 or 8.6.49; parse-community/parse-server to 8.6.49.

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
parse-communityparse-server	Affected >=9.0.0 <9.6.0-alpha.29	Fixed in 9.6.0-alpha.29
parse-communityparse-server	Affected <8.6.49	Fixed in 8.6.49
npmparse-community/parse-server`pkg:npm/parse-community/parse-server`Other threats	Affected <8.6.49	Fixed in 8.6.49

Check your own hosts for these packages with threat-finder (opens in a new tab), our free open-source scanner.

AI-suggested

The primary mitigation is to upgrade parse-server to version 9.6.0-alpha.29 or later, or 8.6.49 or later, where the authentication logic properly validates authData. If immediate upgrade is not feasible, implement a Cloud Code beforeSave trigger on the _User class to reject any signup requests where authData is empty and no username/password is provided. This custom validation ensures that unauthorized user creation attempts are blocked. Additionally, review and tighten access control policies and monitor user creation logs for suspicious activity. Employ rate limiting and anomaly detection to identify potential abuse. Regularly audit parse-server configurations to ensure anonymous user signups are disabled if not required. Finally, keep parse-server and dependencies up to date and subscribe to vendor advisories for timely patching.

Description

Parse Server is an open source backend that can be deployed to any infrastructure that can run Node.js. Prior to 9.6.0-alpha.29 and 8.6.49, a user can sign up without providing credentials by sending an empty `authData` object, bypassing the username and password requirement. This allows the creation of authenticated sessions without proper credentials, even when anonymous users are disabled. The fix in 9.6.0-alpha.29 and 8.6.49 ensures that empty or non-actionable `authData` is treated the same as absent `authData` for the purpose of credential validation on new user creation. Username and password are now required when no valid auth provider data is present. As a workaround, use a Cloud Code `beforeSave` trigger on the `_User` class to reject signups where `authData` is empty and no username/password is provided.

Impact

The vulnerability allows attackers to create authenticated user sessions without valid credentials, effectively bypassing authentication controls. This can lead to unauthorized access to application resources, data leakage, and potential privilege escalation depending on the application's access control implementation. Organizations relying on parse-server for backend user management may face unauthorized account creation, which could be leveraged for further attacks such as data exfiltration, impersonation, or abuse of application functionality. Since the flaw bypasses anonymous user restrictions, it undermines security policies intended to prevent unauthorized access. The impact is particularly significant for applications handling sensitive user data or critical business functions. Although no known exploits exist currently, the ease of exploitation and network accessibility make this a credible threat. The medium CVSS score reflects limited impact on confidentiality and availability but a clear integrity risk due to improper authentication.

CWE-287Improper Authentication (opens in a new tab)
Class weaknessLikelihood of exploit: HighOWASP Top 10 A07:2025: Authentication Failures (opens in a new tab)
When an actor claims to have a given identity, the product does not prove or insufficiently proves that the claim is correct.
MITRE discourages mapping vulnerabilities to this broad entry; the root cause is usually a more specific weakness.
Architecture and Design · Libraries or Frameworks
Use an authentication framework or library such as the OWASP ESAPI Authentication feature.
OWASP Cheat Sheets
OWASP Authentication (opens in a new tab)
OWASP ASVS 4.0.3
V2.8.5 (opens in a new tab)
V2.8.4 (opens in a new tab)
V9.2.3 (opens in a new tab)
Attack patterns
Fake the Source of Data (opens in a new tab)
Utilizing REST's Trust in the System Resource to Obtain Sensitive Data (opens in a new tab)
Session Hijacking (opens in a new tab)
Token Impersonation (opens in a new tab)
Upload a Web Shell to a Web Server (opens in a new tab)
From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

References

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 26 Mar 2026, 01:05 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-287

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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