CyberSecBulletin
CVE-2026-86860NVD status: Awaiting Analysis

ServiceNow AI Platform: Missing Authorization

CVE-2026-86860 is a critical-severity missing authorization vulnerability in ServiceNow AI Platform from ServiceNow, with a CVSS 4.0 base score of 9.3 out of 10. It can be exploited remotely over the network by an unauthenticated attacker, without any action from a user. The record lists versions Yokohama Patch 13 Hot Fix 5a, Zurich Patch 10 Hot Fix 3b, Zurich Patch 10 Hot Fix 4a W32 as the first without the flaw, so updating ServiceNow AI Platform to one of those releases or later removes the exposure. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.31% chance of exploitation within 30 days, which is low compared with other CVEs.

Patch this week

Critical severity: a successful attack would have severe impact.

What to do

  1. Update ServiceNow AI Platform to Yokohama Patch 13 Hot Fix 5a or Zurich Patch 10 Hot Fix 3b or Zurich Patch 10 Hot Fix 4a W32 or Zurich Patch 11 Hot Fix 3, whichever matches your release line, or a later version.
  2. Until you can update, restrict network access to the affected service so it is not reachable from untrusted networks.

Affected products and versions

VendorProductAffected versionsFixed in
ServiceNowServiceNow AI Platformbefore Yokohama Patch 13 Hot Fix 5a; before Zurich Patch 10 Hot Fix 3b; before Zurich Patch 10 Hot Fix 4a W32; before Zurich Patch 11 Hot Fix 3; before Australia Patch 2 Hot Fix 4b W32; before Australia Patch 4 Hot Fix 3; before Australia Patch 5Yokohama Patch 13 Hot Fix 5a, Zurich Patch 10 Hot Fix 3b, Zurich Patch 10 Hot Fix 4a W32, Zurich Patch 11 Hot Fix 3, Australia Patch 2 Hot Fix 4b W32, Australia Patch 4 Hot Fix 3

Version data comes from the organisation that assigned the CVE. Confirm against the vendor advisory before deciding you are unaffected.

How the severity score breaks down

Attack vector
NetworkCan be exploited remotely over a network, including the internet.
Attack complexity
LowNo special conditions are needed; the attack works reliably.
Attack requirements
NoneThe attack does not depend on a particular deployment or configuration.
Privileges required
NoneNo account or login is needed.
User interaction
NoneNo action by a victim is required.
Confidentiality (vulnerable system)
HighSerious loss of confidentiality on the vulnerable system.
Integrity (vulnerable system)
NoneNo loss of integrity on the vulnerable system.
Availability (vulnerable system)
NoneNo loss of availability on the vulnerable system.
Confidentiality (other systems)
HighSerious loss of confidentiality on systems beyond the vulnerable one.
Integrity (other systems)
HighSerious loss of integrity on systems beyond the vulnerable one.
Availability (other systems)
NoneNo loss of availability on systems beyond the vulnerable one.

Vector: CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:H/SI:H/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X. Scored by CNA (servicenow.com).

Official description

ServiceNow has remediated a missing authorization vulnerability that was identified in the ServiceNow AI Platform. This vulnerability could enable an unauthenticated user, in certain circumstances, to extract instance data beyond what was intended, resulting in privilege escalation. ServiceNow deployed a security update to hosted instances and ServiceNow provided the update to our partners and self-hosted customers. We are not currently aware of malicious exploitation against ServiceNow instances. We recommend customers promptly apply appropriate updates or upgrade to a patched release if they have not already done so.

Source: the CVE record as published by its numbering authority, via NVD and CVE.org.

The underlying weakness: Missing Authorization

The product does not perform an authorization check when an actor attempts to access a resource or perform an action.

How developers prevent this class of flaw

  • Divide the product into anonymous, normal, privileged, and administrative areas. Reduce the attack surface by carefully mapping roles with data and functionality. Use role-based access control (RBAC) to enforce the roles at the appropriate boundaries. Note that this approach may not protect against horizontal authorization, i.e., it will not protect a user from attacking others with the same role.
  • Ensure that access control checks are performed related to the business logic. These checks may be different than the access control checks that are applied to more generic resources such as files, connections, processes, memory, and database records. For example, a database may restrict access for medical records to a specific database user, but each record might only be intended to be accessible to the patient and the patient's doctor.
  • Use a vetted library or framework that does not allow this weakness to occur or provides constructs that make this weakness easier to avoid. For example, consider using authorization frameworks such as the JAAS Authorization Framework and the OWASP ESAPI Access Control feature.

More Missing Authorization vulnerabilities (CWE-862)

Timeline

  1. CVE record published.
  2. CISA published its SSVC assessment (exploitation: none, automatable: yes, technical impact: total).
  3. Record last changed materially (score, affected products, status or references).

References

Other vulnerabilities in ServiceNow AI Platform

All ServiceNow AI Platform vulnerabilities

Recent Missing Authorization vulnerabilities

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