Critical severity · published Mar 20, 2026
CVE-2026-33186
gRPC-Go has an authorization bypass via missing leading slash in :path
9.1
CVSS
1.6%
EPSS
No
On KEV
Description
gRPC-Go is the Go language implementation of gRPC. Versions prior to 1.79.3 have an authorization bypass resulting from improper input validation of the HTTP/2 `:path` pseudo-header. The gRPC-Go server was too lenient in its routing logic, accepting requests where the `:path` omitted the mandatory leading slash (e.g., `Service/Method` instead of `/Service/Method`). While the server successfully routed these requests to the correct handler, authorization interceptors (including the official `grpc/authz` package) evaluated the raw, non-canonical path string. Consequently, "deny" rules defined using canonical paths (starting with `/`) failed to match the incoming request, allowing it to bypass the policy if a fallback "allow" rule was present. This affects gRPC-Go servers that use path-based authorization interceptors, such as the official RBAC implementation in `google.golang.org/grpc/authz` or custom interceptors relying on `info.FullMethod` or `grpc.Method(ctx)`; AND that have a security policy contains specific "deny" rules for canonical paths but allows other requests by default (a fallback "allow" rule). The vulnerability is exploitable by an attacker who can send raw HTTP/2 frames with malformed `:path` headers directly to the gRPC server. The fix in version 1.79.3 ensures that any request with a `:path` that does not start with a leading slash is immediately rejected with a `codes.Unimplemented` error, preventing it from reaching authorization interceptors or handlers with a non-canonical path string. While upgrading is the most secure and recommended path, users can mitigate the vulnerability using one of the following methods: Use a validating interceptor (recommended mitigation); infrastructure-level normalization; and/or policy hardening.
CVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
None
Scope
Unchanged
Exploitation
Is it being used?
Exploit prediction (EPSS)1.6% · higher than 75% of CVEs
Exploited in the wildNo evidence yet
CISA KEVNot listed
Ransomware campaign useNot known
Affected products
Which versions
GR
grpc-go · grpc
< 1.79.3 · source: vendor
GR
Grpc · Grpc
before 1.79.3 · source: NVD
BF
Builds for Red Hat OpenShift 1.6.0 · Red Hat
All versions, or not specified · source: CISA
CM
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CO
Compliance Operator 1 · Red Hat
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C4
Cryostat 4 on RHEL 9 · Red Hat
All versions, or not specified · source: CISA
DO
DevWorkspace Operator 0.4 · Red Hat
All versions, or not specified · source: CISA
LS
Logging Subsystem for Red Hat OpenShift 6.4 · Red Hat
All versions, or not specified · source: CISA
LF
Logging for Red Hat OpenShift 6 · Red Hat
All versions, or not specified · source: CISA
LF
Logging for Red Hat OpenShift 6.2 · Red Hat
All versions, or not specified · source: CISA
MG
Multicluster Global Hub 1.3.4 · Red Hat
All versions, or not specified · source: CISA
MG
Multicluster Global Hub 1.4.5 · Red Hat
All versions, or not specified · source: CISA