API-user impersonation via unverified Cognito ID tokens
Published Apr 19, 2023 · Updated Nov 7, 2025
Authentication bypass in Strapi 3.2.1 through 4.5.5 allows remote attackers to impersonate AWS Cognito-authenticated API users. The Cognito handler in the users-permissions providers registry decodes the supplied ID token and trusts its identity claims without verifying its signature against AWS. The AWS Cognito login provider must be enabled, and a forged unsigned token sent to its callback grants the victim's API-user access but not Strapi Admin Panel access.
Summary
What happened
Authentication bypass in Strapi 3.2.1 through 4.5.5 allows remote attackers to impersonate AWS Cognito-authenticated API users. The Cognito handler in the users-permissions providers registry decodes the supplied ID token and trusts its identity claims without verifying its signature against AWS. The AWS Cognito login provider must be enabled, and a forged unsigned token sent to its callback grants the victim's API-user access but not Strapi Admin Panel access.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2023-22893
- Published
- Apr 19, 2023
- Updated
- Nov 7, 2025
- Vendor
- Unknown vendor
- Product
- Unknown product
- Classifications
- CWE-287, T1190
- Attack vector
- network
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Apr 19, 2023CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Nov 7, 2025Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
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What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Affected products and versions are unavailable in this record.
Attacks
What attackers are doing with it
Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.
Public exploit references
- Unsigned Cognito ID-token proof of conceptproof of concept · demonstrated
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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