CVE-2026-79613: Apache Answer Information Disclosure

CVE-2026-79613 Overview

CVE-2026-79613 is an information exposure vulnerability in Apache Answer, an open-source question-and-answer platform. The flaw affects all versions through 2.0.2. Unauthenticated attackers can access comments associated with non-public content by browsing public user profiles. The vulnerability is categorized under [CWE-202] (Exposure of Sensitive Information Through Data Queries). Apache has released version 2.0.3 to address the issue.

Critical Impact
Unauthenticated remote attackers can retrieve comments tied to private or restricted content through unintended data exposure in public user profile endpoints.

Affected Products

Apache Answer versions through 2.0.2
Apache Answer self-hosted deployments
Apache Answer community and enterprise installations

Discovery Timeline

2026-10-19 - CVE CVE-2026-79613 published to NVD
2026-10-19 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2026-79613

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability resides in Apache Answer's public user profile functionality. Public profile endpoints enumerate a user's comment activity without evaluating the visibility context of the parent content. As a result, comments attached to non-public questions or answers are returned alongside comments on public items.

This mismatch between the access control applied to parent content and the queries exposed through profile aggregation produces a classic information exposure through data queries pattern. The server trusts that if a user authored a comment, surfacing it in that user's public timeline is safe, even when the parent content is restricted.

The exposure is reachable without authentication. An attacker can enumerate user profiles across an Apache Answer instance and harvest comment metadata and bodies that administrators intended to keep restricted.

Root Cause

The root cause is a missing authorization check on the parent content when assembling a user's public profile view. The query returns comment records without filtering out those whose associated question or answer is non-public. This is tracked as [CWE-202] and reflects a divergence between the primary access control model and secondary derived views.

Attack Vector

Exploitation requires only HTTP access to the Apache Answer instance. An unauthenticated attacker browses or queries public user profile pages belonging to users who have commented on non-public content. The profile response discloses those comments. No user interaction, privileges, or special conditions are required.

No verified public exploit code is available at this time. See the Apache Mailing List Thread and Openwall OSS Security Update for upstream details.

Detection Methods for CVE-2026-79613

Indicators of Compromise

Unauthenticated HTTP GET requests to Apache Answer user profile endpoints with elevated volume or sequential user ID enumeration patterns.
Access log entries where a single source IP enumerates many /users/ profile paths within a short time window.
Scraper-style user agents or missing Referer headers accessing profile and comment listing endpoints.

Detection Strategies

Review Apache Answer access logs for sustained anonymous traffic against profile endpoints and correlate against the public visibility status of the comments returned.
Deploy web application firewall (WAF) rules to flag high-rate enumeration of profile URLs by unauthenticated clients.
Query backend application logs for comment retrieval events where the parent content visibility is private but the request lacked an authenticated session.

Monitoring Recommendations

Forward Apache Answer web and application logs to a central analytics platform and alert on anomalous profile scraping behavior.
Baseline normal unauthenticated traffic volumes to profile endpoints and alert on deviations.
Monitor outbound data patterns from the Apache Answer host to detect bulk extraction of comment content.

How to Mitigate CVE-2026-79613

Immediate Actions Required

Upgrade Apache Answer to version 2.0.3, which contains the fix for CVE-2026-79613.
Inventory all Apache Answer deployments, including development, staging, and self-hosted community instances.
Review audit and access logs for prior enumeration of profile endpoints and assess what non-public comments may have been exposed.

Patch Information

The Apache Answer project has released version 2.0.3, which corrects the authorization logic on the public user profile endpoint so that comments on non-public content are no longer surfaced. Administrators should upgrade all instances to 2.0.3 or later. Refer to the Apache Mailing List Thread for the upstream advisory.

Workarounds

Place Apache Answer behind an authenticated reverse proxy to block unauthenticated access to user profile endpoints until the upgrade is applied.
Restrict access to the application at the network layer to trusted users while planning the upgrade to 2.0.3.
Use a WAF rule to block anonymous requests to profile paths that return comment data.

bash

# Example WAF rule concept to block unauthenticated profile enumeration
# until Apache Answer is upgraded to 2.0.3
SecRule REQUEST_URI "@beginsWith /users/" \
  "id:1026079613,phase:1,deny,status:403,\
   chain,msg:'Block unauthenticated Apache Answer profile access (CVE-2026-79613)'"
  SecRule &REQUEST_COOKIES:session "@eq 0"