dbcve.org
Improper Privilege ManagementWeakness · CWE-269

CVE-2026-45716

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-05-27
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
94/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable Zero-click

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 · unedited
Budibase is an open-source low-code platform. Prior to 3.38.1, the POST /api/global/users/onboard endpoint is protected by workspaceBuilderOrAdmin middleware, allowing any user with builder permissions to access it. When SMTP email is not configured (the default for self-hosted Budibase instances), this endpoint bypasses the admin-restricted invite flow and directly creates users via bulkCreate, accepting arbitrary admin and builder role assignments from the request body. A builder-level user can create a new global admin account and receive the generated password in the response, achieving full privilege escalation. This vulnerability is fixed in 3.38.1.

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 confidence

The POST /api/global/users/onboard endpoint in Budibase prior to 3.38.1 is protected by workspaceBuilderOrAdmin middleware, allowing builder-level users to access it. When SMTP is not configured (the default for self-hosted instances), this endpoint bypasses the admin-restricted invite flow and creates users directly via bulkCreate, accepting arbitrary admin/builder role assignments from the request body. This enables a builder-level user to create a new global admin account and receive the generated password in the response, achieving full privilege escalation.

MitigationUpgrade Budibase to version 3.38.1 or later. Additionally, ensure SMTP is properly configured to enforce the admin-restricted invite flow.

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
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Verify Budibase version
    Check the installed Budibase version by inspecting the package.json, docker image tag, or the application's /api/health endpoint. Compare it to the affected range: versions prior to 3.38.1 are vulnerable.
    Affected if The installed version is lower than 3.38.1
  2. Confirm SMTP configuration status
    Inspect the Budibase configuration for SMTP settings. This is typically found in the .env file (SMTP_* variables) or the system settings UI. Determine if SMTP is unconfigured or using default empty values.
    Affected if SMTP is not configured or remains at default empty settings (the vulnerability requires this condition to be exploitable)
  3. Identify user role and endpoint access
    Determine the role of the user account being assessed. Check if the user has builder-level permissions (not full admin). Verify that the workspaceBuilderOrAdmin middleware protects the /api/global/users/onboard endpoint by inspecting the route configuration or API behavior.
    Affected if The user holds builder role and can reach the /api/global/users/onboard endpoint with the weaker middleware protection
  4. Verify bulk user creation capability
    Review the user creation flow in Budibase. When SMTP is disabled, the onboard endpoint uses bulkCreate which accepts role assignments from the request body. Check if this endpoint accepts and honors role parameters without additional admin verification.
    Affected if The onboard endpoint accepts arbitrary role assignments in the request body without requiring admin-level invitation flow

A Budibase installation is affected if it runs version < 3.38.1, has SMTP unconfigured (the default), and allows builder-level users to access the /api/global/users/onboard endpoint which accepts arbitrary role assignments including global admin.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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 · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Upgrade Budibase to version 3.38.1 or later. Additionally, ensure SMTP is properly configured to enforce the admin-restricted invite flow.

Recommended fix High confidence

3.38.1

  1. Backup your Budibase instance and database before upgrading
  2. Upgrade Budibase to version 3.38.1 or later
  3. Verify the upgrade was successful by checking the Budibase version in the admin console
  4. Review existing user accounts to confirm no unauthorized admin accounts were created (especially if the instance may have been compromised prior to patching)

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
6.0 hours of engineering $1,060
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2026-45716 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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What belongs here
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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