Cyber Resilience

CVE-2026-33918

Access Control in Open-Emr Openemr ≤ 8.0.0.3

Published
26 March 2026
Modified
26 March 2026
Patch / advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 7.6
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:L/A:L
EPSS Score 0.0024 16th percentile
Risk Priority 55 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2026-33918 is a high-severity Missing Authorization (CWE-862) vulnerability in Open-Emr Openemr. Its CVSS base score is 7.6 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploitation for Privilege Escalation (T1068); ranked at the 16th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to AC-24 (Access Control Decisions) and AC-25 (Reference Monitor) — 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-2026-33918 is a missing authorization vulnerability (CWE-862) in OpenEMR, a free and open-source electronic health records and medical practice management application. In versions prior to 8.0.0.3, the billing file-download endpoint at `interface/billing/get_claim_file.php` only validates for a valid session and CSRF token, without enforcing access control list (ACL) permissions. This flaw enables unauthorized access to sensitive billing data, earning a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.6 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:L/A:L).

Any authenticated OpenEMR user, irrespective of billing privileges, can exploit this vulnerability remotely over the network with low complexity and no user interaction required. Successful exploitation allows the attacker to download electronic claim batch files containing protected health information (PHI) and permanently delete them, resulting in high confidentiality impact alongside low integrity and availability impacts.

The issue is addressed in OpenEMR version 8.0.0.3, which patches the endpoint to include proper ACL checks. Relevant advisories and resources include the GitHub security advisory (GHSA-g3p5-5grq-m65m), the release notes for v8.0.0.3, and the fixing commit (f6d98d0102df0a8f131be560d9208fb65fba6188). Security practitioners should prioritize upgrading affected instances to mitigate exposure of PHI.

OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

OpenEMR is a free and open source electronic health records and medical practice management application. Prior to version 8.0.0.3, the billing file-download endpoint `interface/billing/get_claim_file.php` only verifies that the caller has a valid session and CSRF token, but does not check…

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any ACL permissions. This allows any authenticated OpenEMR user — regardless of whether they have billing privileges — to download and permanently delete electronic claim batch files containing protected health information (PHI). Version 8.0.0.3 patches the issue.

CWE(s)

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1068 Exploitation for Privilege Escalation Privilege Escalation
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in an attempt to elevate privileges.
T1190 Exploit Public-Facing Application Initial Access
Adversaries may attempt to exploit a weakness in an Internet-facing host or system to initially access a network.
T1210 Exploitation of Remote Services Lateral Movement
Adversaries may exploit remote services to gain unauthorized access to internal systems once inside of a network.
T1548 Abuse Elevation Control Mechanism Privilege Escalation
Adversaries may circumvent mechanisms designed to control privilege elevation to gain higher-level permissions.
T1556 Modify Authentication Process Defense Impairment
Adversaries may modify authentication mechanisms and processes to access user credentials or enable otherwise unwarranted access to accounts.
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2023-2945Same product: Open-Emr Openemr
CVE-2025-43838Shared CWE-862
CVE-2023-7268Shared CWE-862
CVE-2024-1158Shared CWE-862
CVE-2024-37427Shared CWE-862
CVE-2025-59561Shared CWE-862
CVE-2025-31533Shared CWE-862
CVE-2024-35725Shared CWE-862
CVE-2025-8565Shared CWE-862
CVE-2024-1804Shared CWE-862

Affected Assets

open-emr
openemr
≤ 8.0.0.3

Mitigating Controls

Control response

Prevent
Stop it (NIST 800-53)

Detect
Catch it (NIST detect / respond)

Harden
Shrink the surface (DISA STIG)
  • 5 hardening rules · 3 OS baselines
Validate
Prove the fix (OWASP ASVS)

Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI

AC-3 directly requires enforcement of authorization decisions on every access request, structurally eliminating missing authorization checks.

AC-24 mandates that access control decisions are applied to each request, preventing bypass of authorization logic.

AC-25 requires a tamperproof, always-invoked reference monitor that ensures authorization checks cannot be omitted.

AC-6 reduces the set of actions reachable without proper authorization, limiting blast radius of missing checks.

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.

PR.AA-05 full match
prevents

Explicitly requires defining, enforcing, and reviewing authorizations and least privilege, directly preventing missing authorization checks.

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.

prevents

Requiring authentication and credentials before any access occurs eliminates the absence of authorization checks that would otherwise allow an unauthenticated actor to reach protected resources.

prevents

Requiring formal authorization of every access request before rights are granted ensures that checks for required permissions are performed, preventing missing authorization checks from being introduced.

prevents

Mandatory authorization checks and central records of granted rights ensure that every access attempt is preceded by an explicit decision rather than relying on missing checks.

mitigates

Segregating the approval of access rights from their implementation provides an independent check that reduces the impact of missing authorization checks in the resulting system configuration.

finds

By requiring competent outsiders to verify that every function enforces the need-to-know principle, the control lowers the likelihood that missing authorization checks persist undetected.

prevents

Defining authorization responsibilities and reviewing risk-treatment progress throughout the project lifecycle catches missing authorization checks before the system is deployed.

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 (2 rules)
  • V-248581 OL 8 must require users to provide a password for privilege escalation. prevents CWE-862
  • V-252656 The OL 8 operating system must not be configured to bypass password requirements for privilege escalation. prevents CWE-862
RHEL 7 (2 rules)
  • V-251704 The Red Hat Enterprise Linux operating system must not be configured to bypass password requirements for privilege escalation. prevents CWE-862
  • V-204429 The Red Hat Enterprise Linux operating system must be configured so that users must provide a password for privilege escalation. prevents CWE-862

References