# CVE-2026-73535: Gitea second-factor bypass through OpenID identity linking

> Attackers can bypass two-factor authentication and take over accounts by linking OpenID identifiers if they know the victim's password.

- **Severity:** High 8.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 14 Oct 2026
- **Updated:** 18 Oct 2026
- **Also known as:** GHSA-8xjr-x7rg-hp5h

## What is CVE-2026-73535?

CVE-2026-73535 is a high-severity authentication bypass vulnerability in Gitea, published on 14 Oct 2026. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Gitea's OpenID connect handler accepts a user's password without enforcing enrolled TOTP or WebAuthn verification before completing sign-in and linking an OpenID identifier. When OpenID sign-in is enabled, an attacker who knows the victim's password can obtain a session and link an attacker-controlled identifier. The attacker can then sign in through that identifier without the victim's password or second factor, and a password change does not remove the link.

Weakness: CWE-696 (Incorrect Behavior Order), CWE-304 (Missing Critical Step in Authentication)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-73535?


## How do I fix CVE-2026-73535?

No fix has been published for CVE-2026-73535 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2026-73535 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-73535 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-73535 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-73535 is a high-severity authentication bypass vulnerability in Gitea, published on 14 Oct 2026. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-73535 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Gitea. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-73535/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-73535/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-73535
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-73535
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-73535

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-73535/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.