CVE-2026-16895
MEDIUMDescription
A logic vulnerability (fail-open condition) has been identified within the Metasploit Framework's JSON-RPC web service interface. When an exception occurs during the database health check (db.check) and the environment variable MSF_WS_JSON_RPC_API_TOKEN is not explicitly set, the application resets the internal state flag msf.auth_initialized to false. The ApiToken Warden authentication strategy misinterprets this false value as an indicator that authentication is not initialized or required, thereby granting unauthenticated local access to the JSON-RPC request dispatcher.
How to fix
No published remediation has been found for this vulnerability's affected products yet.
Mitigation guidance may be in the linked vendor advisories in the References section below.
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CVSS v4 Vector
Exploitability
Impact
CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:L/VI:L/VA:N/SC:L/SI:L/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
Exploit Intelligence
Low risk: more likely to be exploited than 6% of all known CVEs.
References
Related Vulnerabilities
Other CWE-305 vulnerabilities, ordered by exploit likelihood. View all
| CVE | Severity | CVSS | EPSS | Exploited | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2025-31161 | Critical | 9.8 | 100% | KEV + Ransom | Fix |
| CVE-2020-10923 | High | 8.8 | 85% | - | - |
| CVE-2023-28126 | Medium | 5.9 | 67% | - | - |
| CVE-2023-34124 | Critical | 9.8 | 49% | - | Fix |
| CVE-2025-32011 | Critical | 9.8 | 27% | - | - |
| CVE-2024-37085 | Medium | 6.8 | 27% | KEV + Ransom | Fix |
Common questions
How do I fix CVE-2026-16895?
No published fix for CVE-2026-16895 has been found yet. Check the linked vendor advisories for guidance as it becomes available.
Is CVE-2026-16895 being actively exploited?
Not that we know of. CVE-2026-16895 is not in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog. Its EPSS score of 0.16% is the estimated probability that it will be exploited in the next 30 days. That is higher than 6% of all scored CVEs.
How severe is CVE-2026-16895?
CVE-2026-16895 has a CVSS v4 base score of 5.1, rated medium. CVSS rates the technical impact if the vulnerability is exploited, not how likely that is, so weigh it alongside the exploit-prediction score when you decide what to patch first.
Embed a live status badge for CVE-2026-16895
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This product uses NVD data but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. EPSS scores courtesy of FIRST.org (https://www.first.org/epss). Source: CISA KEV Catalog. Data as of 2026-08-28.