CVE-2026-52824
Kimai: Default APP_SECRET in Docker Image Enables Cookie Forgery and Account Takeover
- Published
- Updated
- Reserved
- Assigned by
- GitHub_M
Description
Kimai is an open-source time tracking application. Prior to 2.58.0, the official Docker image sets APP_SECRET to the public value change_this_to_something_unique in Dockerfile, and .docker/entrypoint.sh neither replaces nor rejects that value before Symfony uses it as kernel.secret. An unauthenticated attacker who reaches a deployment that did not override APP_SECRET, knows a username, correctly guesses the account ID associated with that username, and targets an account without active two-factor authentication can forge HMAC-protected authentication artifacts, including KIMAI_REMEMBER cookies and login links, to access the account without its password. The updated entrypoint generates and persists a random secret when no safe operator-provided value exists. This issue is fixed in version 2.58.0.
Scores
| Scored by | CVSS | Score | Vector |
|---|---|---|---|
| GitHub_MCNA (assigner) | 4.0 | Critical9.1 | CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:H/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N |
| NVDNVD · Deferred | 4.0 | Critical9.1 | CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:H/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/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 |
- EPSS (exploitation in 30 days)
- 1.3% · top 29% of all CVEs (5 Nov 2026)
- CISA SSVC
- Exploitation: none · Automatable: no · Technical impact: total
The list uses the assigner's score when there is one, then CISA's, then NVD's: Critical 9.1.
Weakness
Affected products
Affected packages
From reviewed advisories of the GitHub Advisory Database.
- Packagistkimai/kimaiGHSA-jr9p-4h4j-6c58 (opens in a new tab)
References (5)
- https://github.com/kimai/kimai/security/advisories/GHSA-jr9p-4h4j-6c58 (opens in a new tab)x_refsource_CONFIRM
- https://github.com/kimai/kimai/pull/5952 (opens in a new tab)x_refsource_MISC
- https://github.com/kimai/kimai/commit/31a8f887a5cda517db7b4320a7ad997c87d08601 (opens in a new tab)x_refsource_MISC
- https://github.com/kimai/kimai/releases/tag/2.58.0 (opens in a new tab)x_refsource_MISC
- https://www.kimai.org/en/security/ghsa-jr9p-4h4j-6c58 (opens in a new tab)x_refsource_MISC
Sources
The same CVE in the primary databases and aggregators, to check against.
- CVE.org record (opens in a new tab)
- CVE List JSON (GitHub) (opens in a new tab)
- NVD (opens in a new tab)
- FIRST EPSS (opens in a new tab)
- OSV.dev (opens in a new tab)
- GitHub Advisory GHSA-jr9p-4h4j-6c58 (opens in a new tab)
- CIRCL Vulnerability-Lookup (opens in a new tab)
Badge for a README or a ticket
[](https://trackcve.app/cve/CVE-2026-52824)Record last updated .