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Incorrect AuthorizationWeakness · CWE-863

CVE-2026-46519

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-06-11
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
mcp-server-kubernetes is a Model Context Protocol server for Kubernetes cluster management. Prior to version 3.6.0, mcp-server-kubernetes exposes three environment variables (ALLOW_ONLY_READONLY_TOOLS, ALLOW_ONLY_NON_DESTRUCTIVE_TOOLS, ALLOWED_TOOLS) documented as access controls for restricting which Kubernetes operations are available. These controls are enforced at the tool discovery layer (tools/list) but not at the execution layer (tools/call). Any client that knows a tool name can invoke it directly regardless of the configured restriction mode. The access control was effectively cosmetic. This issue has been patched in version 3.6.0.

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 mcp-server-kubernetes MCP server implements environment variable-based access controls (ALLOW_ONLY_READONLY_TOOLS, ALLOW_ONLY_NON_DESTRUCTIVE_TOOLS, ALLOWED_TOOLS) that are only enforced during tool discovery (tools/list) but not during tool execution (tools/call). This allows any client to bypass restrictions by directly invoking known tool names, making the access controls ineffective.

MitigationUpgrade to version 3.6.0 or later which patches this vulnerability by enforcing access controls at the execution layer.

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 mcp-server-kubernetes is present
    Check if the mcp-server-kubernetes binary or container is present in your environment by looking for the executable in your PATH, running containers, or process list
    Affected if The product is not installed or not in use, then you are not affected
  2. Determine installed version
    Run the binary with a version flag (typically --version or -v) or check the container image tag, then compare the version number to 3.6.0
    Affected if Version is less than 3.6.0, proceed to next check; if 3.6.0 or higher, you are not affected by this CVE
  3. Identify access control configuration
    Inspect the environment variables or configuration files used when starting the mcp-server-kubernetes service. Look for ALLOW_ONLY_READONLY_TOOLS, ALLOW_ONLY_NON_DESTRUCTIVE_TOOLS, or ALLOWED_TOOLS
    Affected if Any of these access control environment variables are set, and the version is below 3.6.0, then you are affected by this vulnerability

You are affected if you are running mcp-server-kubernetes version below 3.6.0 with any of the access control environment variables (ALLOW_ONLY_READONLY_TOOLS, ALLOW_ONLY_NON_DESTRUCTIVE_TOOLS, ALLOWED_TOOLS) configured, because the access controls can be bypassed via direct tool invocation.

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 to version 3.6.0 or later which patches this vulnerability by enforcing access controls at the execution layer.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

3.6.0 or later

  1. Check the currently installed version of mcp-server-kubernetes (e.g., check package.json, requirements.txt, or running the binary with --version)
  2. Upgrade to version 3.6.0 or later. If using a package manager, run the appropriate upgrade command (e.g., npm update, pip install --upgrade, or similar for your deployment method)
  3. After upgrading, restart the mcp-server-kubernetes service to load the patched version
  4. Verify the fix by testing that the access control environment variables (ALLOW_ONLY_READONLY_TOOLS, ALLOW_ONLY_NON_DESTRUCTIVE_TOOLS, ALLOWED_TOOLS) are now enforced at the tools/call execution layer, not just at tools/list

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

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing5.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
17.0 hours of engineering $2,970
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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-2026-46519 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

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.

What belongs here
  • 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
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