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VulnerabilityPublished

CVE-2026-56665: ZITADEL · Missing Token Expiration (`exp`) Validation in JWT IdP Provider

Affects github.com/zitadel/zitadelSource GCVE Database

0

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 4.2 Medium : upgrade to 3.4.12 when convenient.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 17:16 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score
4.2Medium
How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.
EPSS
0.2% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 18% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch
Available – fixed in 3.4.12
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:N

Exploitation evidence

  1. Disclosed: evidence found.

    CVE published 11 Sep 2026

  2. Detectable: no evidence on record.

    No public nuclei template indexed

  3. Weaponised: no evidence on record.

    No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB

  4. Exploited in the wild: no evidence on record.

    Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation

  5. Observed by OffSeq 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 26 Oct 2026.

What to do

Upgrade github.com/zitadel/zitadel to 3.4.12.

Affected software

ProductAffectedFixed in
Gogithub.com/zitadel/zitadelAffected
  • <3.4.12
Fixed in
  • 3.4.12

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AI-suggested

A fix is available. Users should upgrade to ZITADEL versions 3.4.12 or later, or 4.15.2 or later, which explicitly reject tokens missing the 'exp' claim. If immediate upgrade is not possible, ensure that the upstream Identity Provider includes the 'exp' claim in all signed JWTs to mitigate the risk.

Description

### Summary A token lifecycle validation vulnerability was discovered in ZITADEL's external JWT Identity Provider (IdP) implementation Specifically, within the validation pipeline, if an incoming JWT omits the `exp` claim entirely, the expiration block is silently skipped rather than rejected. The token is treated as valid forever. Per the OIDC Core 1.0 specification, identity token validation pipelines must strictly handle and enforce session expiration. ZITADEL's silent acceptance of tokens missing these temporal constraints compromises session integrity. ### Impact An attacker in possession of a token lacking an `exp` claim holds a permanent credential with no automatic expiration or revocation window. ### Affected Versions Systems running one of the following versions are affected: * **4.x**: `4.0.0` through `4.15.1` (including RC versions) * **3.x**: `3.0.0` through `3.4.11` (including RC versions) ### Patches The vulnerability has been addressed in the latest releases. ZITADEL now explicitly rejects tokens that lack an `exp` claim. * **4.x**: Upgrade to $\ge$ [4.15.2](https://github.com/zitadel/zitadel/releases/tag/v4.15.2) * **3.x**: Upgrade to $\ge$ [3.4.12](https://github.com/zitadel/zitadel/releases/tag/v3.4.12) ### Workarounds The recommended solution is to update ZITADEL to a patched version. If an immediate upgrade is not feasible, ensure at the upstream Identity Provider level that an external IdP explicitly includes the `exp` claim in all signed JWTs. ### Publication Note This issue was originally disclosed as part of a unified security bulletin published under [GHSA-wxg7-w2v3-w38g](https://github.com/zitadel/zitadel/security/advisories/GHSA-wxg7-w2v3-w38g). To satisfy CVE Numbering Authority regulations regarding independently fixable logic flaws, the missing token expiration validation (`exp`) has been moved into this separate tracking entry so a distinct CVE ID can be correctly mapped to it. ### Questions If there are any questions or comments about this advisory, send an email to [security@zitadel.com](mailto:security@zitadel.com) ### Credits ZITADEL thanks [Android-Login-Analysis](https://github.com/Android-Login-Analysis), Jason Zhou and [Pedro Giglioti](https://github.com/Punisher100) for reporting this vulnerability.

References

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