CVE-2023-46249 - CVE House
Back to Database
Status published Critical CVE-2023-46249

authentik potential installation takeover when default admin user is deleted

Vulnerability Description

authentik is an open-source Identity Provider. Prior to versions 2023.8.4 and 2023.10.2, when the default admin user has been deleted, it is potentially possible for an attacker to set the password of the default admin user without any authentication. authentik uses a blueprint to create the default admin user, which can also optionally set the default admin users' password from an environment variable. When the user is deleted, the `initial-setup` flow used to configure authentik after the first installation becomes available again. authentik 2023.8.4 and 2023.10.2 fix this issue. As a workaround, ensure the default admin user (Username `akadmin`) exists and has a password set. It is recommended to use a very strong password for this user, and store it in a secure location like a password manager. It is also possible to deactivate the user to prevent any logins as akadmin.

Impact Analysis

Refer to official advisory for detailed impact metrics.

Remediation

Ensure systems are updated to the latest vendor-supplied patch levels.

THREAT MONITOR

Am I Vulnerable?

Launch our assessment wizard to check if your infrastructure is exposed to • CVE-2023-46249

Credits & Attribution

No credits recorded in the NVD database.

Affected Vendor

goauthentik

View all reports →

Affected Software

authentik
Vulnerable Versions:
< 2023.8.4, >= 2023.10.0, < 2023.10.2

Timeline

Official Publish: October 31st, 2023
Last Modified: September 5th, 2024
Added to House: July 22nd, 2026

CVSS Vectors

V3: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H

Weaknesses (CWE)