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CVE-2026-76338

HIGH 8.1

Published 2026-08-19 · Last modified 2026-08-21

In Splunk Enterprise versions below 10.4.2, 10.2.6, 10.0.9, and 9.4.14, an unauthenticated user who has access to a trusted distributed search private key could forge an administrative session token, access all relevant data, affect system integrity, and disrupt service availability. The vulnerability is possible because the distributed search authentication token endpoint does not require a signed request to identify a configured search peer, allowing the request to fall back to shared local key material. For more information see About distributed search (https://help.splunk.com/en/splunk-enterprise/administer/distributed-search/10.4/overview-of-distributed-search/about-distributed-search) and authentication.conf (https://help.splunk.com/en/splunk-enterprise/administer/admin-manual/10.4/configuration-file-reference/10.4.2-configuration-file-reference/authentication.conf) in Splunk documentation.

ELEVATED IMPACT

Severe if exploited (CVSS 8.1), but no known exploitation and low modeled probability. Patch on a normal cadence.

Exploitation likelihood

0.3%chance of exploitation in 30 days · 20th percentile

○ In CISA KEV ○ Public exploit / PoC

Impact if exploited

8.1CVSS 3.1 · HIGH

  • ConfidentialityHigh
  • IntegrityHigh
  • AvailabilityHigh

What an attacker needs

  • Access: Reachable over the network — no local access needed
  • Privileges: No account or privileges required
  • User interaction: No user interaction needed
  • Complexity: Needs a race window or specific setup

✓ lowers the bar for an attacker · ⚠ raises it

Proof of concept & exploit code

Test against your own equipment

curl -s https://vulnpedia.com/cve/CVE-2026-76338/poc.jsonMachine-readable PoC index for this CVE (for automation).

Listed for defensive triage, patch verification, and authorized testing on systems you own. Machine-readable: /cve/CVE-2026-76338/poc.json

Affected

Vendors Splunk

Products Splunk Enterprise Splunk

Weakness (CWE)

  • CWE-287: When an actor claims to have a given identity, the software does not prove or insufficiently proves that the claim is correct.

CVSS vector

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Known Affected Software Configurations

VendorProductVersion range
SplunkSplunk≥ 9.4.0 and < 9.4.14
SplunkSplunk≥ 10.0.0 and < 10.0.9
SplunkSplunk≥ 10.2.0 and < 10.2.6
SplunkSplunk≥ 10.4.0 and < 10.4.2

All CVSS metrics

  • HIGH 8.1 v3.1 · CNA Primary
    CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
  • HIGH 8.1 v3.1 · NVD Secondary
    CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

References

Sources: NVD · CVE.org · EPSS