Raw vector
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:H/AT:P/PR:H/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:N/SC:H/SI:H/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:XSummary
CVE-2026-33433 is a medium-severity Authentication Bypass by Spoofing (CWE-290) vulnerability in Traefik Traefik. Its CVSS base score is 5.1 (Medium).
Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Adversary-in-the-Middle (T1557); ranked at the 38th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog; a public proof-of-concept is referenced.
The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to IA-2 (Identification and Authentication (Organizational Users)) and IA-3 (Device Identification and Authentication) — see the control section below for these in your framework.
Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary
Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.
CVE-2026-33433 is a vulnerability in Traefik, an HTTP reverse proxy and load balancer, affecting versions prior to 2.11.42, 3.6.11, and 3.7.0-ea.3. The issue occurs when the `headerField` configuration uses a non-canonical HTTP header name, such as `x-auth-user` instead of `X-Auth-User`. In this scenario, Traefik writes a non-canonical header, but the backend receives duplicate entries where the canonical version takes precedence, enabling header override. It is classified under CWE-290 with a CVSS v3.1 base score of 8.8 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H).
An authenticated attacker with low privileges can exploit this vulnerability remotely over the network with low complexity and no user interaction required. By injecting a canonical version of the header (e.g., `X-Auth-User`), the attacker overrides Traefik's intended non-canonical header, as the backend processes the injected canonical header first. This allows the attacker to impersonate any identity passed to backend services, potentially leading to unauthorized access, data compromise, or other high-impact actions on confidentiality, integrity, and availability.
Traefik's security advisory (GHSA-qr99-7898-vr7c) and release notes for versions 2.11.42, 3.6.11, and 3.7.0-ea.3 confirm that these updates patch the vulnerability by addressing the header canonicalization handling in `headerField` configurations. Security practitioners should prioritize upgrading affected Traefik instances to one of these patched versions to mitigate the risk.
OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2026-16616
Vulnerability Data
Traefik is an HTTP reverse proxy and load balancer. Prior to versions 2.11.42, 3.6.11, and 3.7.0-ea.3, when `headerField` is configured with a non-canonical HTTP header name (e.g., `x-auth-user` instead of `X-Auth-User`), an authenticated attacker can inject their own canonical version…
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of that header to impersonate any identity to the backend. The backend receives two header entries — the attacker-injected canonical one is read first, overriding Traefik's non-canonical write. Versions 2.11.42, 3.6.11, and 3.7.0-ea.3 patch the issue.
- CWE(s)
Related Threats
MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques
CVEs Like This One
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Control response
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- 3 hardening rules · 3 OS baselines
V6.4.3V10.4.16V10.5.1V11.4.3
Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI
Proper unique identification and authentication of users directly stops spoofing-based bypass of authentication.
Device identification and authentication before connection prevents spoofing of devices to bypass auth.
Authentication of non-organizational users blocks external spoofing attempts against the scheme.
Authenticator management ensures credentials cannot be easily spoofed or reused to bypass authentication.
Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
Protecting, conveying, and verifying identity assertions specifically prevents the spoofing that enables authentication bypass.
Requiring authentication of users/services/hardware directly counters spoofing-based bypass when strong methods are used.
Proofing and binding identities reduces spoofing opportunities during enrollment but does not address runtime authentication implementation flaws.
Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
Secure authentication control directly mitigates authentication bypass by spoofing.
Authentication information management directly addresses credential handling that prevents spoofing.
Security testing can detect spoofing vulnerabilities but does not prevent them by itself.
Access control policy reduces spoofing opportunities but does not prescribe authentication mechanisms.
Identity management supports unique identities but does not guarantee resistance to spoofing.
Access rights assignment limits exposure but does not enforce authentication strength.
Hardening callouts derived
Configuration rules from DISA STIG baselines that bear on weaknesses of the type cited by this CVE. Each rule is shown with the relationship its mapping actually records, against the CWE it was authored against. Derived via CVE→CWE over `controls_xwalks` (authoritative rows only; rows rated `none` are excluded).
Oracle Linux 8 (1 rule)
- V-248827 OL 8 must not have the rsh-server package installed. prevents CWE-290
RHEL 7 (1 rule)
- V-204442 The Red Hat Enterprise Linux operating system must not have the rsh-server package installed. prevents CWE-290
RHEL 8 (1 rule)
- V-230492 RHEL 8 must not have the rsh-server package installed. prevents CWE-290