CVE-2026-86830: AWS TEAM Privilege Escalation Vulnerability

CVE-2026-86830 Overview

CVE-2026-86830 is an incorrect privilege assignment vulnerability [CWE-266] in the Temporary Elevated Access Management (TEAM) for AWS IAM Identity Center solution before version 1.5.1. Authenticated remote users with application-level access can read, approve, modify, or revoke arbitrary access requests. Successful exploitation grants unintended temporary elevated access to AWS accounts managed through the TEAM deployment.

The issue impacts organizations relying on TEAM to broker just-in-time privileged access to AWS accounts through IAM Identity Center. AWS resolved the flaw in TEAM version 1.5.1.

Critical Impact
An authenticated TEAM user can escalate privileges and gain unintended temporary elevated access to any AWS account governed by the TEAM deployment, undermining just-in-time access controls.

Affected Products

Temporary Elevated Access Management (TEAM) for AWS IAM Identity Center, versions prior to 1.5.1
Forked or derivative deployments of the TEAM open-source solution based on vulnerable versions
AWS accounts governed through vulnerable TEAM deployments

Discovery Timeline

2026-09-14 - CVE-2026-86830 published to NVD
2026-09-14 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2026-86830

Vulnerability Analysis

The TEAM solution provides a self-hosted workflow that lets AWS customers request, approve, and audit temporary elevated access to AWS accounts through IAM Identity Center. The application enforces role separation between requesters, approvers, and administrators to preserve least privilege.

CVE-2026-86830 breaks that separation. The application assigns incorrect privileges to authenticated users, allowing any user with application-level access to act on arbitrary access requests. An attacker can read requests they should not see, approve their own or others' requests, modify request parameters, or revoke legitimate approvals.

Because TEAM ultimately issues IAM Identity Center permission sets, a successful privilege escalation inside TEAM translates directly into unintended access to AWS accounts and workloads governed by the deployment.

Root Cause

The root cause is classified as CWE-266: Incorrect Privilege Assignment. The application does not correctly bind access-request operations to the caller's authorized role, so authorization checks fail to distinguish between the requester, approver, and administrator scopes exposed by the TEAM API.

Attack Vector

Exploitation requires network access to the TEAM application and valid application credentials. No user interaction is required. An authenticated user issues requests to TEAM endpoints that manage access requests, and the application services those requests without enforcing the intended role boundary. The attacker then receives approved temporary credentials for a targeted AWS account.

No verified public proof-of-concept is available. Refer to the GitHub Security Advisory GHSA-6x87-mjv8-mgvj and the AWS Security Bulletin 2026-112 for authoritative technical details.

Detection Methods for CVE-2026-86830

Indicators of Compromise

Access requests approved by users who are not designated approvers for the target account or permission set.
Access requests modified or revoked by accounts other than the original requester or authorized approver.
IAM Identity Center session activity for permission sets granted through TEAM requests that do not match documented business justifications.
TEAM audit log entries showing state transitions on requests initiated by unrelated user principals.

Detection Strategies

Reconcile TEAM application audit logs against IAM Identity Center CloudTrail events to confirm that every elevated session traces to an authorized approval chain.
Alert on TEAM API calls that read, approve, modify, or revoke requests where the actor's role does not match the expected approver group.
Baseline normal approver-to-requester relationships and flag deviations, especially self-approvals or cross-team approvals.

Monitoring Recommendations

Forward TEAM application logs and AWS CloudTrail management events to a centralized analytics platform for correlation.
Monitor sso:CreateApplicationAssignment, sso:DeleteApplicationAssignment, and sts:AssumeRole events originating from TEAM-issued sessions.
Track version metadata of the deployed TEAM stack to detect regressions to vulnerable releases below 1.5.1.

How to Mitigate CVE-2026-86830

Immediate Actions Required

Upgrade all TEAM deployments to version 1.5.1 or later as published in the GitHub Release v1.5.1.
Audit forked or derivative TEAM code and apply the equivalent fixes before redeploying.
Review TEAM audit logs and IAM Identity Center CloudTrail data for suspicious approvals or elevated sessions since the deployment date.
Revoke any active elevated sessions that cannot be tied to a legitimate, authorized approval.

Patch Information

AWS addressed the vulnerability in TEAM version 1.5.1. Deployment artifacts and release notes are available in the GitHub Release v1.5.1. AWS documents the fix in AWS Security Bulletin 2026-112 and the coordinated GitHub Security Advisory GHSA-6x87-mjv8-mgvj.

Workarounds

Restrict TEAM application access to a minimal, vetted set of users until the upgrade to 1.5.1 completes.
Temporarily disable the TEAM application in IAM Identity Center if immediate patching is not possible and use break-glass procedures for elevated access.
Rotate credentials and reissue permission sets for any AWS accounts where unauthorized elevated access is suspected.

bash

# Configuration example: verify deployed TEAM version and pull the patched release
git -C iam-identity-center-team fetch --tags
git -C iam-identity-center-team checkout v1.5.1
# Redeploy the CDK stack after applying the patched code
cd iam-identity-center-team && npm ci && npx cdk deploy --all