Incorrect Authorization in Elasticsearch Leading to Information Disclosure
Incorrect Authorization (CWE-863) in Elasticsearch can allow an authenticated user with limited index privileges to exploit insufficient authorization controls in the ingest simulation feature. By targeting indices they are not authorized to access directly, the user can cause those indices' configured ingest pipelines to execute and return their output, potentially disclosing data processed or enriched by those pipelines. Additionally, the same feature can be used to retrieve index mapping metadata for indices the user is not authorized to access directly.
Affected Versions:
- 8.x: All versions from 8.12.0 up to and including 8.19.17
- 9.x:
- All versions from 9.0.0 up to and including 9.3.6
- All versions from 9.4.0 up to and including 9.4.3
Users on the 9.5.x release line are not affected. The fix was included in the initial 9.5.0 release.
Affected Configurations:
- This vulnerability affects Elasticsearch deployments that have ingest pipelines configured on indices with restricted access, and where users exist with differing levels of index privileges.
Solutions and Mitigations:
The issue is resolved in versions 8.19.18, 9.3.7, and 9.4.4.
For Users that Cannot Upgrade:
- There are no workarounds for this vulnerability.
Indicators of Compromise (IOC)
No specific indicators of compromise have been identified for this vulnerability.
Elastic Cloud Serverless
Due to our continuous deployment and patching model, the vulnerability described in this security advisory was remediated in our Elastic Cloud Serverless offering before the public disclosure.
Severity: CVSSv3.1: Medium ( 5.3 ) - CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
CVE ID: CVE-2026-56144
Problem Type: CWE-863 - Incorrect Authorization