Raw vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:L/A:NSummary
CVE-2026-40022 is a high-severity Authentication Bypass Using an Alternate Path or Channel (CWE-288) vulnerability in Apache Camel. Its CVSS base score is 8.2 (High).
Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploit Public-Facing Application (T1190); ranked at the 47th 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-25 (Reference Monitor) and AC-3 (Access Enforcement) — 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-2026-40022 is a vulnerability in the Apache Camel embedded HTTP server and embedded management server (camel-platform-http-main) when authentication is enabled via BasicAuthenticationConfigurer or JWTAuthenticationConfigurer and a non-root context path, such as /api or /admin, is configured using camel.server.path or camel.management.path. The issue arises because these configurers derive the authentication path from properties.getPath() if camel.server.authenticationPath or camel.management.authenticationPath is not explicitly set. Due to Vert.x's sub-router mounting model, where the sub-router mounts at the path prefix and the authentication handler registers at the exact resolved path, authentication only applies to the precise context path and not its subpaths. This allows unauthenticated access to protected business routes and management endpoints under those subpaths, such as /api/_route_ or /admin/observe/info. The vulnerability affects Apache Camel versions from 4.14.1 before 4.14.6 and from 4.18.0 before 4.18.2, with a CVSS v3.1 base score of 8.2 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:L/A:N) and is associated with CWE-288 (Authentication Bypass Using an Alternate Path or Channel).
Any unauthenticated attacker with network access to the affected Apache Camel server can exploit this vulnerability by crafting HTTP requests to unprotected subpaths under the configured context paths. For instance, requests to /admin/observe/info bypass authentication entirely, enabling attackers to retrieve sensitive runtime metadata including the current user, working directory, home directory, process ID, JVM details, and operating system information. This results in high confidentiality impact through information disclosure and low integrity impact, potentially aiding further reconnaissance or attacks, without requiring privileges, user interaction, or elevated complexity.
The official Apache Camel security advisory at https://camel.apache.org/security/CVE-2026-40022.html and the announcement on the oss-security mailing list at http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2026/04/26/5 recommend upgrading to Apache Camel version 4.20.0 to remediate the issue. Users on the 4.14.x LTS release stream should upgrade to 4.14.6, while those on the 4.18.x LTS stream should upgrade to 4.18.2. No additional workarounds are specified beyond these version updates.
OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2026-25807
Vulnerability Data
When authentication is enabled on the Apache Camel embedded HTTP server or embedded management server (camel-platform-http-main) and a non-root context path such as /api or /admin is configured via camel.server.path or camel.management.path, the BasicAuthenticationConfigurer and JWTAuthenticationConfigurer classes derive the authentication…
more
path from properties.getPath() when camel.server.authenticationPath / camel.management.authenticationPath is not explicitly set. Combined with the Vert.x sub-router mounting model - the sub-router is mounted at _path_* and the authentication handler is registered inside the sub-router at the resolved path - this causes the authentication handler to match only the exact configured context path, not its subpaths. Unauthenticated requests to subpaths such as /api/_route_ or /admin/observe/info therefore reach protected business routes and management endpoints without being challenged for credentials. The /observe/info endpoint can disclose runtime metadata such as the user, working directory, home directory, process ID, JVM and operating system information. This issue affects Apache Camel: from 4.14.1 before 4.14.6, from 4.18.0 before 4.18.2. Users are recommended to upgrade to version 4.20.0, which fixes the issue. If users are on the 4.14.x LTS releases stream, they are suggested to upgrade to 4.14.6. If users are on the 4.18.x LTS releases stream, they are suggested to upgrade to 4.18.2.
- CWE(s)
Related Threats
MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques
CVEs Like This One
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Control response
—
—
- 7 hardening rules · 3 OS baselines
V6.4.3V6.6.1V12.1.3
Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI
Requires a tamperproof, always-invoked reference monitor that structurally blocks bypass via any alternate path.
Enforces authorization checks on every logical access path, eliminating unauthenticated alternate channels.
Mandates unique identification and authentication for all organizational users, covering the primary authentication requirement.
Controls all external and key internal interfaces, reducing the chance of unauthenticated alternate channels.
SI-10 mandates validation (including canonicalization) of inputs before security decisions are made, directly stopping the incorrect ordering that enables the bypass.
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.
Requiring authentication on every channel and path directly eliminates alternate-path bypasses.
Enforcing authorizations and least privilege across all access vectors prevents unauthenticated alternate paths.
Protecting networks and environments from unauthorized logical access blocks bypass via undocumented channels.
Secure SDLC practices directly require correct authorization logic after parsing/canonicalization to prevent bypasses.
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.
Security testing can detect alternate-path bypasses but does not prevent them in production.
Secure authentication control directly mitigates bypass by requiring strong, consistent authentication on all paths.
Access control policy directly addresses alternate authentication paths by requiring all channels to enforce authentication.
Authentication information management ensures credentials and mechanisms are consistently applied across all access paths.
Access rights provisioning and review prevent bypass via unmonitored or alternate channels.
Privileged access rights control reduces risk of bypass through elevated or alternate paths.
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-248598 There must be no ".shosts" files on the OL 8 operating system. prevents CWE-288
- V-248827 OL 8 must not have the rsh-server package installed. prevents CWE-288
Oracle Linux 9 (2 rules)
- V-271757 OL 9 file systems must not contain shosts.equiv files. prevents CWE-288
- V-271758 OL 9 file systems must not contain .shosts files. prevents CWE-288
RHEL 7 (3 rules)
- V-204440 Red Hat Enterprise Linux operating systems version 7.2 or newer using Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) must require authentication upon booting into single-user and maintenance modes. prevents CWE-288
- V-204442 The Red Hat Enterprise Linux operating system must not have the rsh-server package installed. prevents CWE-288
- V-204424 The Red Hat Enterprise Linux operating system must not allow accounts configured with blank or null passwords. prevents CWE-288