High · published October 7, 2026
Authorization Bypass Through User-Controlled Key (CWE-639) in Elasticsearch can lead to Information Disclosure via a specially crafted cross-cluster search request that references an unauthorized shard identifier. Elasticsearch contains an authorization bypass weakness in its handling of cross-cluster search requests made through the Remote Cluster Security (RCS) 2.0 model. An authorization check validates a request against one identifying attribute of the target shard, while a separate, independently-supplied identifying attribute in the same request determines which shard is actually accessed. A holder of a cross-cluster API key authorized for one index can craft a request whose two identifying attributes refer to different indices, causing the request to be authorized against an index they can access while actually operating against a different, unauthorized index. This can expose that index's document contents, field mappings, and other metadata, and in limited cases allows modification of retention-lease state on the unauthorized index.
| Product | Versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
| elastic/elasticsearch | ≥ 8.13.0, < 8.19.23 | 8.19.23 |
| elastic/elasticsearch | ≥ 9.0.0, < 9.4.8 | 9.4.8 |
| elastic/elasticsearch | ≥ 9.5.0, < 9.5.5 | 9.5.5 |