CVE-2026-78560: Improper Authentication Validation in Okta Access Gateway Pass-Through Authentication Source

Severity: medium (CVSS 6.5 v3.1)
Exploited in the wild: not listed in CISA KEV
EPSS: 0.3% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days
Public exploit or detection template: none known
Published: 2026-09-08 · updated 2026-09-23
Weakness: CWE-287

Description

The Okta Access Gateway includes an optional pass-through authentication source that accepts user identity from a client-supplied HTTP header without cryptographic validation. In architectures where this optional source is enabled without an upstream reverse proxy or firewall configured to sanitize and enforce client headers, an unauthenticated user can supply an arbitrary identity value to initiate a session.

Affected products

Okta Access Gateway: before 2026.9.1 — fixed in 2026.9.1

How to fix

Upgrade to a fixed version: Okta Access Gateway 2026.9.1. Check the vendor advisory for mitigations.

References

https://trust.okta.com/security-advisories/improper-authentication-validation-in-okta-access-gateway-pass-through-authentication-source-cve-2026-78560

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