countly-server: Incorrect Authorization
CVE-2026-87803 is a high-severity incorrect authorization vulnerability in countly-server from Countly, with a CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.1 out of 10. It can be exploited remotely over the network by an attacker with a low-privileged account, without any action from a user. The record lists version 25.03.53-LTS as the first without the flaw, so updating countly-server to that release 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.
High severity with no evidence of exploitation so far.
What to do
- Update countly-server to 25.03.53-LTS or a later version.
Affected products and versions
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Countly | countly-server | before 25.03.53-LTS | 25.03.53-LTS |
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.
- Privileges required
- LowA basic user account is enough.
- User interaction
- NoneNo action by a victim is required.
- Scope
- UnchangedImpact stays within the vulnerable component.
- Confidentiality
- HighAll data handled by the component can be read.
- Integrity
- LowLimited modification of data is possible.
- Availability
- NoneAvailability is not affected.
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:L/A:N. Scored by CNA (snyk.io).
| Scoring system | Score | Severity | Scored by |
|---|---|---|---|
| CVSS 4.0 | 7.1 | High | CNA (snyk.io) |
| CVSS 3.1 | 7.1 | High | CNA (snyk.io) |
Official description
An authorization bypass vulnerability exists in the Countly Server DBViewer due to flawed sub-pipeline detection in the aggregation stage sanitizer. The /o/db aggregation endpoint parses user-controlled aggregation JSON and passes it through a stage sanitizer that determines whether a nested array is a sub-pipeline by checking if every element contains a key present in a hardcoded KNOWN_STAGE_OPERATORS set. If any element contains an unrecognized stage key, such as the undocumented MongoDB-internal $_internalInhibitOptimization, the sanitizer misclassifies the entire branch as a generic array and skips stage-level stripping for all sibling stages. This allows a non-admin user with DBViewer read permission to inject forbidden operators like $lookup inside $facet sub-pipelines, performing cross-collection joins into restricted collections. This leads to unauthorized read access to sensitive data including password-reset tokens (prid), enabling account takeover.
Source: the CVE record as published by its numbering authority, via NVD and CVE.org.
The underlying weakness: Incorrect Authorization
The product performs an authorization check when an actor attempts to access a resource or perform an action, but it does not correctly perform the check.
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.
Timeline
- CVE record published.
- CISA published its SSVC assessment (exploitation: none, automatable: no, technical impact: partial).
References
Patches and release notes
Other vulnerabilities in countly-server
- 9.0 Critical severity
- 7.5 High severity
- 8.1 High severity
- 7.5 High severity
- 8.1 High severity
Recent Incorrect Authorization vulnerabilities
- 8.8 High severity
- 9.8 Critical severity
- 8.3 High severity
- 9.1 Critical severity
- 8.3 High severity
- 8.8 High severity
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