CVE-2026-22797
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedAn issue was discovered in OpenStack keystonemiddleware 10.5 through 10.7 before 10.7.2, 10.8 and 10.9 before 10.9.1, and 10.10 through 10.12 before 10.12.1. The external_oauth2_token middleware fails to sanitize incoming authentication headers before processing OAuth 2.0 tokens. By sending forged identity headers such as X-Is-Admin-Project, X-Roles, or X-User-Id, an authenticated attacker may escalate privileges or impersonate other users. All deployments using the external_oauth2_token middleware are affected.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidenceThe external_oauth2_token middleware in OpenStack keystonemiddleware versions 10.5-10.7, 10.8-10.9, and 10.10-10.12 fails to sanitize incoming authentication headers before processing OAuth 2.0 tokens. An authenticated attacker can inject forged identity headers (X-Is-Admin-Project, X-Roles, X-User-Id) to escalate privileges to admin or impersonate other users.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Changed
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- Low
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:L
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
-
Identify keystonemiddleware versionRun 'pip show keystonemiddleware' or check the installed package version via your package manager (e.g., pip list | grep keystonemiddleware, apt list --installed | grep keystonemiddleware, or rpm -qa | grep keystonemiddleware)Affected if The installed version falls within 10.5.x through 10.7.x, 10.8.x through 10.9.x, or 10.10.x through 10.12.x (for example, 10.5.0, 10.7.0, 10.8.0, 10.9.0, 10.10.0, or 10.12.0)
-
Confirm external_oauth2_token middleware is configuredSearch configuration files (typically in /etc/keystone/ or your middleware config directory) for 'external_oauth2_token' in the [filter:external_oauth2_token] section, or check pipeline definitions in paste-deploy configuration filesAffected if The external_oauth2_token middleware is present and enabled in the middleware pipeline (the vulnerability only applies when this specific middleware is in use)
-
Verify OAuth 2.0 token processing is activeInspect the external_oauth2_token middleware configuration for parameters like 'token_url', 'client_id', or 'oauth2' related settings that indicate the middleware is actively processing OAuth 2.0 tokensAffected if OAuth 2.0 token validation is enabled and the middleware is configured to process external OAuth 2.0 tokens (the flaw occurs during OAuth 2.0 token processing)
-
Check for untrusted header forwardingReview the upstream proxy or load balancer configuration to determine whether incoming authentication headers (X-Is-Admin-Project, X-Roles, X-User-Id) from external OAuth providers are passed through to the keystonemiddleware without validationAffected if The deployment allows external authentication headers from the OAuth 2.0 provider to reach the keystonemiddleware without sanitization or validation (these headers can be forged by authenticated attackers)
-
Confirm identity header acceptanceExamine whether the external_oauth2_token middleware accepts and processes the X-Is-Admin-Project, X-Roles, or X-User-Id headers from the OAuth 2.0 token endpoint responseAffected if The middleware configuration permits these identity headers to be used for privilege assignment or user identification (this is the vulnerable behavior)
You are affected if keystonemiddleware versions 10.5.x through 10.12.x are installed AND the external_oauth2_token middleware is enabled with OAuth 2.0 token processing, allowing untrusted authentication headers from external OAuth providers to pass through unchecked.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
dbcve · scopedUpgrade keystonemiddleware to version 10.7.2, 10.9.1, or 10.12.1 or later to receive the patch. If immediate upgrade is not possible, disable the external_oauth2_token middleware or implement header filtering at the upstream proxy.
Upgrade to python-keystonemiddleware version 10.12.1 (latest fixed release in the 10.x series)
- Identify the currently installed version of python-keystonemiddleware using pip show or your distribution's package manager
- Upgrade to version 10.7.2 or later for the 10.7.x branch, 10.9.1 or later for the 10.9.x branch, or 10.12.1 or later for the 10.12.x branch using: pip install --upgrade python-keystonemiddleware
- Alternatively, upgrade using your distribution's package manager (e.g., apt-get update && apt-get upgrade python3-keystonemiddleware for Debian/Ubuntu, or yum update python3-keystonemiddleware for RHEL/CentOS)
- Verify the upgrade was successful by checking the installed version: pip show python-keystonemiddleware
- Restart any services that use keystonemiddleware (e.g., OpenStack services) to ensure the patched version is loaded
- Review application logs after restart to confirm services are running correctly with the patched middleware
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA3.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $5,312.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2026-22797 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2026-22797 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.
A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.
- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data