Is this vulnerability remotely exploitable?

Yes, in typical deployments it can be exploited remotely whenever a service accepts SciTokens over a network and relies on SciTokens C++ for path-based authorization. The attacker must be able to submit or obtain a token whose scope includes crafted path segments.

What level of access does an attacker need to exploit this?

The attacker generally needs the ability to present a SciToken to a target service—often equivalent to being an authenticated or federated user. They do not need direct filesystem access; they only need the service to interpret the token's path scope for authorization.

What is the safest general fix pattern?

The safest pattern is to treat any scope containing directory traversal patterns (`..`, backtracking segments, or ambiguous encodings) as invalid and reject it during authorization. After rejection checks, perform canonical path resolution and ensure that the resulting path is strictly confined within a predefined root for that token or tenant.

Severity:

HIGH RISK

(8.3)

Path Traversal Scope Normalization (CWE-23) in SciTokens C++ Authorization

CVE-2026-32725

Published:

Mar 31, 2026

Status:

Analyzed

Summary

Affected Context

Exploit Preconditions

Why This Happens

Potential Impact

General Mitigation Guidance

How Teams Detect Issues Like This

Frequently Asked Questions

Source

NDV

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Vulnerability Type

Category:

Path Traversal / Authorization Bypass

CWE:

CWE-23

Impact:

Authorization Bypass and Over-Privileged Resource Access

Severity:

HIGH RISK

(8.3)

CVSS Version:

3.1

Vulnerability Type

Category:

Path Traversal / Authorization Bypass

CWE:

CWE-23

Impact:

Authorization Bypass and Over-Privileged Resource Access

Severity:

HIGH RISK

(8.3)

CVSS Version:

3.1

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Path Traversal Scope Normalization (CWE-23) in SciTokens C++ Authorization

Summary

Affected Context

Exploit Preconditions

Why This Happens

Potential Impact

General Mitigation Guidance

How Teams Detect Issues Like This

Frequently Asked Questions

Source

Recent Vulnerabilities

HIGH RISK

HIGH

(8.8)

PHP Code Injection via File Upload (CWE-94) in Aero CMS Admin Post Creation

HIGH RISK

HIGH

(8.8)

Code Injection (CWE-94) via Module Parameters in Evolution CMS

Vulnerability Type

Vulnerability Type

Vulnerability Type

Catch This CVE While Code Is Being Written

Ship clean & secure code faster

Ship clean & secure code faster

Ship clean & secure code faster

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