GHSA-x883-2vmg-xwf7
LOWAuthelia's Group Changes may not have the expected results (YAML file backend)
Blast Radius
github.com/authelia/authelia/v4Real-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects Go packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
Impact
Under very specific conditions changes to a users groups may not have the expected results.
The specific conditions are:
- The file authentication backend is being used.
- The watch option is set to true.
- The refresh_interval is configured to a non-disabled value.
- The users groups are adjusted by an administrator.
- The user attempts to access a resource that their groups previously had access to but their new groups do not have access to.
When these conditions are met administrators may find the changes are not taken into account by access control for longer than expected periods. While this may not necessarily be a security vulnerability it's security-adjacent and because of the unexpected nature of it and our dedication to a security-first culture we feel it's important to make users aware of this behaviour utilizing a security advisory and the existence of a fix.
This:
- Can not have an Impact for Unauthenticated Users.
- Can not have an Impact for Configurations utilizing the LDAP Backend.
- Can not be directly or indirectly caused by a users or third parties actions.
Patches
This behaviour was identified after it was inadvertently fixed in the master branch during the multi-cookie domain rework (i.e. between feature releases). A patch for prior versions can be provided upon request. The fix was to ensure the details are updated regardless of backend, it was a small oversight in previous functionality which made refreshing ineffectual prior to v4.37.0.
Workarounds
Ensure you restart between user database changes.
References
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐹Go | github.com/authelia/authelia/v4 | ≥ 4.37.0&&< 4.38.0 | 4.38.0 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for github.com/authelia/authelia/v4. O3's reachability analysis confirms whether the vulnerable code path is actually invoked in your application, so you act on real exposure instead of every transitive match.
Fix
Update github.com/authelia/authelia/v4 to 4.38.0 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-x883-2vmg-xwf7 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands.
How O3 protects you
O3 pinpoints whether GHSA-x883-2vmg-xwf7 is reachable in your code and exactly where to fix it, then blocks exploitation in production at runtime until the patched version is deployed.
Tailored to GHSA-x883-2vmg-xwf7. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is GHSA-x883-2vmg-xwf7 in your dependencies?
O3 detects GHSA-x883-2vmg-xwf7 across Go dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.