How severe is CVE-2026-41081?

CVE-2026-41081 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 6.5, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is low, integrity low, and availability none.

Is CVE-2026-41081 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 0% (20th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2026-41081?

CVE-2026-41081 affects Apache Storm. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.

How do I fix CVE-2026-41081?

Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.

Does CVE-2026-41081 have an EU (EUVD) identifier?

Yes. CVE-2026-41081 is tracked in the ENISA EU Vulnerability Database (EUVD) as EUVD-2026-25848.

When was CVE-2026-41081 published?

CVE-2026-41081 was published on 2026-04-27 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2026-41081

CVE-2026-41081 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Apache Storm with a CVSS 3.x base score of 6.5. It is not currently listed as actively exploited by CISA, and its EPSS exploit-prediction score is low. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-287.

Key facts

Severity: Medium (CVSS 3.x base score 6.5)
EPSS exploit prediction: 0% (20th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
EU (EUVD) id: EUVD-2026-25848
Weakness: CWE-287
Affected product: Apache Storm
Published: 2026-04-27
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

Improper Handling of TLS Client Authentication Failure Leading to Anonymous Principal Assignment in Apache Storm Versions Affected: up to 2.8.7 Description: When TLS transport is enabled in Apache Storm without requiring client certificate authentication (the default configuration), the TlsTransportPlugin assigns a fallback principal (CN=ANONYMOUS) if no client certificate is presented or if certificate verification fails. The underlying SSLPeerUnverifiedException is caught and suppressed rather than rejecting the connection. This fail-open behavior means an unauthenticated client can establish a TLS connection and receive a valid principal identity. If the configured authorizer (e.g., SimpleACLAuthorizer) does not explicitly deny access to CN=ANONYMOUS, this may result in unauthorized access to Storm services. The condition is logged at debug level only, reducing visibility in production. Impact: Unauthenticated clients may be assigned a principal identity, potentially bypassing authorization in permissive or misconfigured environments. Mitigation: Users should upgrade to 2.8.7 in which TLS authentication failures are handled in a fail-closed manner. Users who cannot upgrade immediately should: - Enable mandatory client certificate authentication (nimbus.thrift.tls.client.auth.required: true) - Ensure authorization rules explicitly deny access to CN=ANONYMOUS - Review all ACL configurations for implicit default-allow behavior

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2026-41081?: Improper Handling of TLS Client Authentication Failure Leading to Anonymous Principal Assignment in Apache Storm Versions Affected: up to 2.8.7 Description: When TLS transport is enabled in Apache Storm without requiring client certificate authentication (the default configuration), the TlsTransportPlugin assigns a fallback principal (CN=ANONYMOUS) if no client certificate is presented or if certificate verification fails. The underlying SSLPeerUnverifiedException is caught and suppressed rather than rejecting the connection. This fail-open behavior means an unauthenticated client can establish a TLS connection and receive a valid principal identity. If the configured authorizer (e.g., SimpleACLAuthorizer) does not explicitly deny access to CN=ANONYMOUS, this may result in unauthorized access to Storm services. The condition is logged at debug level only, reducing visibility in production. Impact: Unauthenticated clients may be assigned a principal identity, potentially bypassing authorization in permissive or misconfigured environments. Mitigation: Users should upgrade to 2.8.7 in which TLS authentication failures are handled in a fail-closed manner. Users who cannot upgrade immediately should: - Enable mandatory client certificate authentication (nimbus.thrift.tls.client.auth.required: true) - Ensure authorization rules explicitly deny access to CN=ANONYMOUS - Review all ACL configurations for implicit default-allow behavior
How severe is CVE-2026-41081?: CVE-2026-41081 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 6.5, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is low, integrity low, and availability none.
Is CVE-2026-41081 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 0% (20th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2026-41081?: CVE-2026-41081 affects Apache Storm. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.
How do I fix CVE-2026-41081?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.
Does CVE-2026-41081 have an EU (EUVD) identifier?: Yes. CVE-2026-41081 is tracked in the ENISA EU Vulnerability Database (EUVD) as EUVD-2026-25848.
When was CVE-2026-41081 published?: CVE-2026-41081 was published on 2026-04-27 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (1)

cpe:2.3:a:apache:storm:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

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