CVE-2026-53645: FOSSBilling's missing self-edit prevention in staff permission management allows persistent privilege escalation
FOSSBilling is a free, open-source billing and client management system. Versions prior to 0.8.0 allow a low-privileged staff account to grant arbitrary module permissions to itself through the admin API, resulting in persistent privilege escalation. A staff user that only has staff.createandeditstaff can call /api/admin/staff/permissionsupdate targeting their own account and write any permission structure, bypassing the intended role-based access control boundary. Version 0.8.0 patches the issue. Some workarounds are available. Restrict the staff.createandeditstaff permission to only highly trusted staff members and/or use a reverse proxy or WAF to restrict access to /api/admin/staff/permissionsupdate to specific trusted roles.
Affected Software
Remediation
Recommended actions to resolve this vulnerability, in priority order.
- Upgrade
Upgrade
FOSSBillingto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 0.8.0 - Configuration
Limit the `staff.create_and_edit_staff` permission so only highly trusted staff members can hold it, preventing low-privileged staff from using the staff permissions admin API to escalate privileges.
FOSSBilling staff permission model staff.create_and_edit_staff = restricted to only highly trusted staff members - Compensating control
Restrict access to the `/api/admin/staff/permissions_update` endpoint (e.g., via a reverse proxy or WAF) so only specific trusted roles can reach it.
Event History
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the severity of CVE-2026-53645?
CVE-2026-53645 has a risk score of 65, indicating a significant security vulnerability.
How do I fix CVE-2026-53645?
To fix CVE-2026-53645, update FOSSBilling to version 0.8.0 or later.
What are the potential impacts of CVE-2026-53645?
CVE-2026-53645 allows low-privileged staff accounts to escalate their privileges, potentially compromising system security.
Who is affected by CVE-2026-53645?
CVE-2026-53645 affects users of FOSSBilling versions prior to 0.8.0.
What type of vulnerability is CVE-2026-53645?
CVE-2026-53645 is a privilege escalation vulnerability due to missing self-edit prevention in staff permission management.