dbcve.org
Improper AuthenticationWeakness · CWE-287

CVE-2026-61740

CRITICAL · 9.3 CVSS v4.0 Published 2026-07-15
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click 5 weeks old

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
LightRAG provides simple and fast retrieval-augmented generation. Prior to 1.5.4, when LightRAG is deployed with LIGHTRAG_API_KEY set but AUTH_ACCOUNTS unset, X-API-Key protection can be bypassed because lightrag/api/auth.py falls back to a hardcoded DEFAULT_TOKEN_SECRET, /auth-status and /login can mint guest JWTs, and combined_dependency in lightrag/api/utils_api.py accepts a valid guest token before checking the API key. A remote unauthenticated attacker can call endpoints guarded by combined_auth, including document read, upload, deletion, graph mutation, and query endpoints. This vulnerability is fixed in 1.5.4.

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

LightRAG versions before 1.5.4 have an authentication bypass where the system falls back to a hardcoded DEFAULT_TOKEN_SECRET when LIGHTRAG_API_KEY is set but AUTH_ACCOUNTS is unset. The /auth-status and /login endpoints can mint guest JWTs, and the combined_dependency accepts valid guest tokens before validating the API key, allowing unauthenticated attackers to access guarded document and graph mutation endpoints.

MitigationUpgrade to LightRAG 1.5.4 and ensure AUTH_ACCOUNTS is properly configured alongside LIGHTRAG_API_KEY to prevent fallback to the default secret.

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
None
Authentication
X
User interaction
None
Scope
X

CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:L/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X

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. Identify installed LightRAG version
    Run 'pip show lightrag' or check the package version in your environment. Compare against the affected range: versions before 1.5.4 are vulnerable.
    Affected if Installed version is lower than 1.5.4
  2. Check for LIGHTRAG_API_KEY environment variable
    Inspect environment variables (printenv | grep LIGHTRAG_API_KEY or check your deployment config). Determine if this key is configured.
    Affected if LIGHTTRAG_API_KEY is set in the environment
  3. Verify AUTH_ACCOUNTS configuration
    Inspect configuration files or environment for AUTH_ACCOUNTS setting. This may be an environment variable, config file entry, or YAML/JSON configuration. Check if it is defined and non-empty.
    Affected if AUTH_ACCOUNTS is unset, null, or empty while LIGHTRAG_API_KEY is set
  4. Test guest token issuance on vulnerable endpoints
    Send unauthenticated requests to /auth-status or /login endpoints and observe if a guest JWT token is returned. Then use that token to access document or graph mutation endpoints.
    Affected if Guest JWT tokens are issued without requiring valid API key authentication, allowing access to guarded endpoints
  5. Inspect runtime authentication behavior
    Monitor the application logs or debug output when authentication occurs. Look for references to DEFAULT_TOKEN_SECRET or fallback authentication behavior.
    Affected if The application logs show use of a default/hardcoded secret instead of a properly configured AUTH_ACCOUNTS

You are affected if running LightRAG below version 1.5.4 with LIGHTRAG_API_KEY configured but AUTH_ACCOUNTS unset or empty, which allows guest token-based access to guarded endpoints.

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 LightRAG 1.5.4 and ensure AUTH_ACCOUNTS is properly configured alongside LIGHTRAG_API_KEY to prevent fallback to the default secret.

Recommended fix High confidence

1.5.4

  1. 1. Identify the current installed version of LightRAG by checking the package version (e.g., pip show lightrag or package.json)
  2. 2. If current version is prior to 1.5.4, upgrade to version 1.5.4 or later using the package manager (e.g., pip install lightrag>=1.5.4 or the equivalent for your deployment method)
  3. 3. After upgrading, verify the fix by confirming that AUTH_ACCOUNTS is properly configured and that the hardcoded DEFAULT_TOKEN_SECRET is no longer used as a fallback
  4. 4. Test that /auth-status and /login endpoints no longer mint guest JWTs when AUTH_ACCOUNTS is unset
  5. 5. Confirm that endpoints guarded by combined_auth require valid authentication (either proper API key or valid user credentials)

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
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
8.0 hours of engineering $1,390
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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-2026-61740 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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