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ZITADEL Vulnerable to Account Takeover Due to Improper Instance Validation in V2 Login

High severity GitHub Reviewed Published Dec 8, 2025 in zitadel/zitadel • Updated Mar 9, 2026

Package

gomod github.com/zitadel/zitadel (Go)

Affected versions

< 1.80.0-v2.20.0.20251208091519-4c879b47334e
>= 1.83.4, <= 1.87.5
>= 4.0.0-rc.1, < 4.7.1

Patched versions

1.80.0-v2.20.0.20251208091519-4c879b47334e
4.7.1
gomod github.com/zitadel/zitadel/v2 (Go)
< 1.80.0-v2.20.0.20251208091519-4c879b47334e
1.80.0-v2.20.0.20251208091519-4c879b47334e

Description

Summary

A potential vulnerability exists in ZITADEL's password reset mechanism in login V2. ZITADEL utilizes the Forwarded or X-Forwarded-Host header from incoming requests to construct the URL for the password reset confirmation link. This link, containing a secret code, is then emailed to the user.

Impact

If an attacker can manipulate these headers (e.g., via host header injection), they could cause ZITADEL to generate a password reset link pointing to a malicious domain controlled by the attacker. If the user clicks this manipulated link in the email, the secret reset code embedded in the URL can be captured by the attacker. This captured code could then be used to reset the user's password and gain unauthorized access to their account.

It's important to note that this specific attack vector is mitigated for accounts that have Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) or Passwordless authentication enabled.

Affected Versions

Systems using the login UI (v2) and running one of the following versions are affected:

  • v4.x: 4.0.0-rc.1 through 4.7.0

Patches

The vulnerability has been addressed in the latest release. The patch resolves the issue by correctly validating the X-Forwarded-Host and Forwarded headers against the instance custom and trusted domains.

Before you upgrade, ensure that:

  • the ZITADEL_API_URL is set and is pointing to your instance, resp. system in multi-instance deployments.
  • the HTTP host (or a x-forwarded-host) is passed in your reverse proxy to the login UI.
  • a x-zitadel-instance-host (or x-zitadel-forward-host) is set in your reverse for multi-instance deployments. If you're running a single instance solution, you don't need to take any actions.

Patched versions:

  • 4.x: Upgrade to >=4.7.1

Workarounds

The recommended solution is to update ZITADEL to a patched version.

A ZITADEL fronting proxy can be configured to delete all forwarded header values or set it to the requested host before sending requests to ZITADEL self-hosted environments.

Questions

If you have any questions or comments about this advisory, please email us at security@zitadel.com

Credits

Thanks to Amit Laish – GE Vernova for finding and reporting the vulnerability.

References

@livio-a livio-a published to zitadel/zitadel Dec 8, 2025
Published to the GitHub Advisory Database Dec 8, 2025
Reviewed Dec 8, 2025
Published by the National Vulnerability Database Mar 7, 2026
Last updated Mar 9, 2026

Severity

High

CVSS overall score

This score calculates overall vulnerability severity from 0 to 10 and is based on the Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS).
/ 10

CVSS v3 base metrics

Attack vector
Network
Attack complexity
Low
Privileges required
None
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
None

CVSS v3 base metrics

Attack vector: More severe the more the remote (logically and physically) an attacker can be in order to exploit the vulnerability.
Attack complexity: More severe for the least complex attacks.
Privileges required: More severe if no privileges are required.
User interaction: More severe when no user interaction is required.
Scope: More severe when a scope change occurs, e.g. one vulnerable component impacts resources in components beyond its security scope.
Confidentiality: More severe when loss of data confidentiality is highest, measuring the level of data access available to an unauthorized user.
Integrity: More severe when loss of data integrity is the highest, measuring the consequence of data modification possible by an unauthorized user.
Availability: More severe when the loss of impacted component availability is highest.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N

EPSS score

Exploit Prediction Scoring System (EPSS)

This score estimates the probability of this vulnerability being exploited within the next 30 days. Data provided by FIRST.
(2nd percentile)

Weaknesses

URL Redirection to Untrusted Site ('Open Redirect')

The web application accepts a user-controlled input that specifies a link to an external site, and uses that link in a redirect. Learn more on MITRE.

CVE ID

CVE-2026-29067

GHSA ID

GHSA-pfrf-9r5f-73f5

Source code

Credits

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