CVE-2026-56152: Elastic Defend Authorization Vulnerability

CVE-2026-56152 Overview

CVE-2026-56152 is an Incorrect Authorization vulnerability [CWE-863] affecting Elastic Defend. Under specific conditions, a low-privileged authenticated user can access response action data they are not authorized to view. The flaw maps to CAPEC-1 (Accessing Functionality Not Properly Constrained by ACLs) and results in unauthorized information disclosure.

Elastic assigned the issue a CVSS v3.1 base score of 5.3 (Medium). The vulnerability affects confidentiality only, with no impact to integrity or availability. Elastic addressed the flaw in Elastic Defend versions 8.19.13, 9.2.7, and 9.3.2 as part of security advisory ESA-2026-46.

Critical Impact
Authenticated low-privileged users can read response action data belonging to other tenants or higher-privileged roles, exposing endpoint response telemetry.

Affected Products

Elastic Defend versions prior to 8.19.13
Elastic Defend 9.2.x versions prior to 9.2.7
Elastic Defend 9.3.x versions prior to 9.3.2

Discovery Timeline

2026-07-01 - CVE-2026-56152 published to NVD
2026-07-01 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2026-56152

Vulnerability Analysis

CVE-2026-56152 stems from an authorization check gap in the Elastic Defend response actions subsystem. Response actions in Elastic Defend include commands such as host isolation, process termination, and file retrieval executed against managed endpoints. These actions produce response data containing sensitive operational context about endpoints and the outcome of security operations.

The access control logic enforces role-based restrictions when submitting response actions but fails to consistently enforce the same restrictions when reading action results. A low-privileged authenticated user can retrieve response action data outside their assigned scope. The exposure is limited to confidentiality: the attacker cannot modify actions or disrupt availability.

Exploitation requires the attacker to already hold valid credentials in the Elastic stack. The high attack complexity reflects specific preconditions that must exist for the flawed authorization path to be reached.

Root Cause

The root cause is missing or incomplete authorization enforcement [CWE-863] on API endpoints that return response action metadata and results. The application evaluates authentication but does not fully validate whether the requesting principal has the required role or space membership to view the requested action record.

Attack Vector

The attack vector is network-based. An authenticated user with low privileges issues API requests to the Elastic Defend response action endpoints and receives data belonging to other authorized users or spaces. No user interaction is required. See the Elastic Security Advisory ESA-2026-46 for vendor-provided technical detail.

Detection Methods for CVE-2026-56152

Indicators of Compromise

Unexpected read requests to Elastic Defend response action API endpoints originating from low-privileged user accounts.
Audit log entries showing successful retrieval of response action results by users outside the owning space or role.
Spikes in API calls to endpoint response action listing endpoints from accounts that do not normally use them.

Detection Strategies

Enable and centrally collect Kibana and Elasticsearch audit logs, then alert on response action reads by principals lacking the endpoint_response_actions privilege.
Baseline normal response action API usage per role and flag deviations from that baseline.
Correlate authentication events with response action access to identify accounts performing reconnaissance across spaces.

Monitoring Recommendations

Forward Elastic stack audit logs to a centralized SIEM or data lake for long-term retention and cross-source correlation.
Review role and space assignments for any account that accessed response action data during the exposure window.
Monitor for privilege changes and new API key creation on accounts that interacted with response action endpoints.

How to Mitigate CVE-2026-56152

Immediate Actions Required

Upgrade Elastic Defend to version 8.19.13, 9.2.7, or 9.3.2 or later, matching your deployment branch.
Audit user role assignments and remove unnecessary access to Elastic Defend response actions.
Rotate API keys and credentials for accounts that may have been used to enumerate response action data.

Patch Information

Elastic released fixed versions 8.19.13, 9.2.7, and 9.3.2 under advisory ESA-2026-46. Refer to the Elastic Security Update discussion for full remediation guidance and version applicability.

Workarounds

Restrict Elastic Defend response action privileges to a minimal set of trusted administrators until patching is complete.
Segment users into dedicated Kibana spaces so that response action visibility aligns with intended data boundaries.
Enable audit logging and actively review access to response action endpoints as a compensating control.

bash

# Verify installed Elastic Defend version and confirm it meets the fixed release
curl -sk -u "$ES_USER:$ES_PASS" \
  "$KIBANA_URL/api/fleet/epm/packages/endpoint" | jq '.item.version'

# Expected output: 8.19.13, 9.2.7, 9.3.2 or later