What is CVE-2023-46249?

CVE-2023-46249 is a critical-severity vulnerability in Goauthentik Authentik, classified under Improper Authentication. CVSS score: 9.6/10. Published 2023-10-31.

How severe is CVE-2023-46249?

Critical severity. CVSS v3 base score is 9.6 out of 10.

Is CVE-2023-46249 known to be exploited?

1 public proof-of-concept repositories are indexed. Not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

Auth bypass in Goauthentik Authentik

CVE-2023-46249

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.

Vulnerability class: Broken Authentication

Published 2023-10-31 · last modified 2026-06-17.

CVSS v3 metric

CVSS v3 base score 9.6 (Critical). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H.

EPSS exploit prediction

EPSS: 0.007 (50.3th percentile), scored 2026-10-19.

Very low probability of exploitation in the next 30 days; routine patching cadence is appropriate. 50th percentile — 50.3% of CVEs in the catalogue have a lower EPSS than this one. How to read EPSS.

EPSS over last 30 days · oldest: 0.007 · newest: 0.007 · change: 0.000

Affected products

Goauthentik Authentik — versions < 2023.8.4, >= 2023.10.0, < 2023.10.2

Weakness classification (CWE)

Public proof-of-concept exploits

ARPSyndicate/cve-scores

References

github.com/goauthentik/authentik/security/advisories/GHSA-rjvp-29xq-f62w (Vendor Advisory)
github.com/goauthentik/authentik/commit/261879022d25016d58867cf1f24e90b81ad618d0 (Patch)
github.com/goauthentik/authentik/commit/ea75741ec22ecef34bc7073f1163e17a8a2bf9fc (Patch)
github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version/2023.10.2 (Release Notes)
github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version/2023.8.4 (Release Notes)

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2023-46249?: CVE-2023-46249 is a critical-severity vulnerability in Goauthentik Authentik, classified under Improper Authentication. CVSS score: 9.6/10. Published 2023-10-31.
How severe is CVE-2023-46249?: Critical severity. CVSS v3 base score is 9.6 out of 10.
Is CVE-2023-46249 known to be exploited?: 1 public proof-of-concept repositories are indexed. Not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.