CVE-2026-6266 Aap-controller: aap-gateway: account hijacking and unauthorized access via unverified email linking
Attackers can hijack accounts or gain admin access by exploiting unverified email linking in the AAP gateway.
- Exploited in the wild
- Not known
- Login needed
- Any signed-in user
- Attackable
- Over the internet
- Victim action needed
- Not needed
- Fix
- Available
What is CVE-2026-6266?
CVE-2026-6266 is a high-severity authentication bypass vulnerability in Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform 2.5 for RHEL 8, published on 4 May 2026. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.
Official description
A flaw was found in the AAP gateway. The user auto-link strategy, introduced in AAP 2.6, automatically links an external Identity Provider (IDP) identity to an existing AAP user account based on email matching without verifying email ownership. This allows a remote attacker to potentially hijack a victim's account or gain unauthorized access to other accounts, including administrative accounts, by manipulating the IDP-provided email.
Weakness: CWE-305
Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-6266?
How do I fix CVE-2026-6266?
Apply the vendor's patch.
Upgrade, and rotate credentials and sessions that may have been exposed. More about Authentication bypass.
Is CVE-2026-6266 being exploited?
There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-6266 in the wild and no public exploit code.
Sources
Also known as GHSA-6hqg-wj7g-983r.